Broad and alternative category clustering of the same, similar or different categories in social/geo/promo link promotional data sets for end user display of interactive ad links, promotions and sale of products, goods and services integrated with 3d spatial geomapping and social networking

ABSTRACT

A technique, method, apparatus, and system to provide related and integrated social networking, real time geospatial mapping, geo-target location and multiple points of interest, receiving current location of user&#39;s electronic or mobile device and multiple points of interest, cloud-type configuration storing and handling user data across multiple enterprises, generating user behavior data and ad links, promotions (“social/geo/promo”) links on a website for any product, good or service, including social/geo/promo data sets for user customized visual displays showing 3D map presentations with correlated or related broad or alternative categories of social/geo/promo links to be displayed with web page content for view by an end user.

PRIORITY

This application is a continuation in part of, and claims priority to,U.S. application Ser. Nos. 13/233,352, filed 15 Sep. 2011, 13/337,271,filed 26 Dec., 2011, 13/337,275, filed 26 Dec., 2011, and 13/359,498,filed 27 Jan., 2012, 13/369,244 filed Feb. 8, 2012, each of whichapplications are entirely incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The subject matter relates to online systems, methods, and computerrelated aspects of providing broad and alternative category clusteringof the same, similar or different categories in social/geo/promo linkpromotional data sets for end user display of interactive ad links,promotions and sale of products, goods and services integrated with 3Dspatial geomapping and social networking.

BACKGROUND

Time and resources are wasted in the marketing of online products andservices. Consumers waste time shopping in person or attempting tosearch for products or services online where they lack control or createsuitable preferences for access to the search results. One approachtaken in response to these and other shortcomings involves providing forproducts or services over the Internet, e.g., a system for shoppingonline over public computer networks such as the Internet. However,users and members of such systems stem usually must be registered,wherein registration and/or subscription by the user can provideinformation sufficient to identify the user, such as the users andmembers name, address, Internet e-mail address, and/or an identificationnumber, using an Internet server and a user display terminal incommunication therewith. There are, however, numerous shortcomings tosuch a system. Group buying sites leverage the power of collectivebargaining, providing local product or services deals that offer savingsfor consumers while delivering improved sales numbers to participatingmerchants.

In standard GM and/or GIS systems, geographically-referenced informationis maintained confidential and protected datastores by the creatorsand/or collectors of such data. Access to information in the datastoresis controlled and provided directly by the creator and/or owner. Withoutknowledge of the source and/or location of particulargeographically-referenced information and a password and/or certificateto access the information, the information is inaccessible. Integrationof geographically-referenced information to provide an integratedinterface and/or view of the information in context with a geographicmap is usually performed at a user's computer using sophisticated GMand/or GIS software.

Alternatively, a user can interface with a server device managed by thecreator through a client device running specialized softwareapplications to interact with the GM and/or GIS databases of the datacreators. At present access to data in a public forum is generallyrestricted by standard network security measures such as digestauthentication and certificates. However, there are problems andshortcomings with online products or services which should also providesocially conscious information about the companies that supply theonline products or services so that consumers can see where thecompanies and/or stores are located and can find out information aboutthe companies, communities they are located in, what interaction andhelp they provide to communities and/or other economic and/or sociallyresponsible activities, and to associate the geographical and othergeospatially available information connecting also by the use ofintegrated social media, which combination is not current providedand/or available.

Consumers enjoy interacting with friends, acquaintances and strangersacross many media channels, but that doesn't mean they trust them as asource of advertising. However, a new host of companies are connectingbrands to consumers through their social connections. New web technologyhas created unexpected ways for advertisers to track your web activitywithout your knowledge enabling advertising networks to secretly monitora user's activity across multiple websites and build detailed profilesof their behavior and interests.

Social software applications include communication tools and interactivetools. Communication tools typically handle the capturing, storing andpresentation of communications, usually written but increasinglyincluding audio and video as well. Interactive tools handle mediatedinteractions between a pair or group of users. They focus onestablishing and maintaining a connection amount users, facilitating themechanics of conversation and talk.

Interactive media (e.g., the Internet) has great potential for thetargeting of advertisements (“ads”) to receptive audiences. One form ofonline advertising is ad syndication, which allows advertisers to extendtheir marketing reach by distributing ads to additional partners. Forexample, third party online publishers can place an advertiser's text orimage ads on web properties with desirable content to drive onlinecustomers to the advertiser's website. An example of such a system isAdSense™ offered by Google, Inc.

Ad syndication can also include related social/geo/promo linkpromotional data sets as one type of ad format. Related social/geo/promolink promotional data sets display a list of selectable topics orcategories as links. For example, third party online publishers canplace one or more related social/geo/promo link promotional data sets ona requested web page, where the related social/geo/promo linkpromotional data sets display topics or categories relevant to thecontent of the requested web page. When a user selects one of thecategories of the related social/geo/promo link promotional data set,the user can be presented with ads in the selected category which arerelated to the content of the requested web page. Relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data sets can provide ads which areclosely targeted to the interests of a user.Related social/geo/promo link promotional data sets can display one ormore (e.g., four or five) categories. However, if the categories of arelated social/geo/promo link promotional data set are very similar, auser will likely choose the first category, ignoring the remainingcategories on the list. This can reduce the distribution potential ofthe ads in the remaining categories on the list. If multiple relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data sets are displayed with a webpage, a user may have difficulty finding a particular category ofinterest if the categories are scattered across the multiple relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data sets without regard to thecorrelation or diversity of the categories.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides one or more of a method, apparatus, orsystem to provide related and integrated social networking, real timegeospatial mapping, geo-target location and multiple points of interest,receiving current location of user's electronic or mobile device andmultiple points of interest, cloud-type configuration storing andhandling user data across multiple enterprises, generating user behaviordata, ad links and promotions (“social/geo/promo”) links on a websitefor any product, good or service, including social/geo/promo data setsfor user customized visual displays showing 3D map presentations withcorrelated or related broad or alternative categories ofsocial/geo/promo links to be displayed with web page content for view byan end user. In one implementation, a method is provided. The methodincludes selecting a first social/geo/promo link category for a firstposition of a social/geo/promo link promotional data set to be displayedon an interactive 3D geospatial mapping display for an ad link,promotion or sale of online products, goods or services with socialnetworking and company and local information. One or more secondsocial/geo/promo link categories are identified using one or morecorrelation criteria, where at least one second social/geo/promo linkcategory has one or more correlation criteria associated with the firstsocial/geo/promo link category.

The present invention provides in one aspect a system and method forproviding combined technologies for social networking interactions usingtracking, predicting, and implementing online consumer communications,browsing behavior, buying patterns, social networking, social networkingcommunications, embedded advertisements and affiliate advertising andcommunications, for ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobileservices, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, pennyauctions or online auctions, bidding, bidding behavior, bidding resultsfor targeting and filtering of ad links, promotions, online coupons,mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping,penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliateadvertising on a three dimensional geospatial platform using geospatialmapping technology, company-local information, social networking, andsocial networking communities (“PGS-GM-CL/I-SN”).

The present invention addresses problems and/or shortcomings of prioronline products and services, which should also provide sociallyconscious information about the companies that supply the onlineproducts and services so that consumers can see where the companiesand/or stores are located and can find out information about thecompanies, communities they are located in, what interaction and helpthey provide to communities and/or other economic and/or sociallyresponsible activities, and to associate the geographical and othergeospatially available information connecting also by the use ofintegrated social media, which combination is not current providedand/or available.

As users and members and/or subscribers of the website, (e.g., “SocialShoppers”) shop the world for ad links, promotions, online coupons,mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping,penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliateadvertising e.g., but not limited to, any promotion, products, goods orservices. Such users and members and/or subscribers (e.g., “SocialShoppers”) can find great ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobileservices, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, pennyauctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliate advertisingfrom leading travel & hospitality industry, restaurant, toy and/orentertainment companies and/or top retailers around the world.

Users and members of the present invention can do one or more of thefollowing: Use the present invention after installing Google Earth™ orsimilar plug-ins; View Social Earth ad links, promotions, Products,Goods & Services, optional information about microloans or microcredit,humanitarian aid and support other worldly causes through charitabledonations or sustainable gifts for those in need around the world bygeo-target location on the present inventions unique Live View of theplanet; View “live social feeds” from social networking sites such asFacebook™ and Twitter™; Zoom to birds-eye and human scale view andnavigate around stunning 3D satellite images of the virtual Earth; Typein an address and fly directly to the location on the platform by usingthe zoom technology; and/or Watch videos from RSS links. The presentinvention provides a unique interactive user experience, view live linksto places and events knowing that a portion of the dollars spent on thepresent invention are going to help those in impoverished conditionsaround the world.

The delivery system for a host geospatial website (accessible via amobile device or computer) can provide for a multidimensionalrepresentation of information and/or sealable version of web content foran infrastructure and global platform that provides users and membersand businesses of all types and sizes with access to broad markets forthe delivery system and method for providing combined social behaviortracking, online surveillance and web bot software technologies via amobile device or computer for tracking online consumer behavior anddata, cookies, embedded advertisements and affiliate advertising, socialplugins, social applications, predicting online consumer behavior,buying patterns, monitoring online activity, location, onlinecommunications, search inquiries, social networking, social plugins, adlinks, promotions, social applications, products, goods and services, ona three dimensional geospatial platform using geospatial mappingtechnology.

A host geospatial website can include realistic virtual landscape usingsatellite and/or aerial photography that can include many content layersof web based information, e-commerce and mobile banking links, socialnetworking, social networking communities and/or advertisements andaffiliate advertising for a richer user experience. A host geospatialwebsite shall store images, web-based content, social data and/or sharelive social feeds from social networking giants Facebook™ and Twitter™,social networking, social networking communities, social plugins, socialapplications, ad links, promotions, Products, Goods & Services, and/orother communications in real-time. The use of geospatial mapping forassociating information to specific places can include, but is notlimited to, one or more of: Live links to places and events; Data on thelandscape; Zoom to birds-eye and human scale views; 3D customaudio/visual content; Interactive 360 panoramas; Fly-through tours withcontent, narration, music; Stunning imagery and videos; 3D buildings andlandscaping e-commerce and mobile banking tools and hooks; Advertisingon the landscape; Advanced search for private and public information;Social networking, social plugins, social applications, socialintegration and social networking communities; Self-posting foruploading user generated content; Custom tools, social and mobile appsand widgets; tracking social behavior and the like.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a newmechanism for tracking social behavior and profiling a user during themarketing of digital content, by any means known in the art, e.g., asdisclosed in U.S. application Ser. No. 09/797,647, filed Mar. 1, 2001,which is entirely incorporated herein by reference.

Another object of the invention is to provide such a mechanism which issubstantially ambivalent to the underlying nature of the digitalcontent.

Another object of the invention is to provide such a mechanism whichworks when the user is off-line and accessing a local inventory of thedigital content.

Another object of the invention is to provide geo-target location ormobile device and receiving current location of user's electronic deviceand multiple points of interest.

Another object of the invention is to provide group chat, circle offriends, hangouts, games, search, uploading videos or photos and instantmessenger in connection with social networking and multiple points ofinterest.

Another object of the invention is to provide media and entertainment,sporting events, stadiums, venues, athletes, players, coaches, scoresand updates, scoreboards, sports memorabilia or other merchandise,advertisements, popular sports around the world such as Summer & WinterOlympics, baseball, basketball, cricket, cycling, golf, hockey, football(American), football (soccer), World Cup Soccer, motorsports, rowing,rugby, swimming, tennis, RSS links, videos and other Products, Goods orServices.

Another object of the invention is to provide cloud-type configurationstoring and handling user data across multiple applications andgenerating user behavior data.

And, another object of the invention is to provide such a mechanismwhich operates continuously, whenever consumers want and without needfor the actual physical availability of vendor and financialintermediary parties.

Briefly, preferred embodiment of the present invention is a method forcollecting user data, and optionally creating a user profile. Aninventory of digital content is supplied, wherein at least part of theinventory is pre-stored on a client computer. The inventory includes atleast one asset, collateral for an asset, or advertisement. Informationabout the inventory is displayed to a user of the client computer anduser data is collected about the user based on their actions with regardto the information about the inventory. Optionally, a user profile isthen constructed based on the user data.

An advantage of the present invention is that it provides behaviortracking and user profiling at the speed of digital electronics, yetoperates in the context of the conventional, time proven, widelyunderstood, and trusted transactional interrelation of consumer,financial intermediary, and vendor.

Another advantage of the invention is that it may be entirely automatedand may employ communications with outside services which may also beentirely automated.

And, another advantage of the invention is that it is efficient andeconomical for all involved. The initial user being tracked and profiledare not burdened and the end users of the information provided canautomatically and cheaply obtain the data being generated.

These and other objects and advantages of the present invention willbecome clear to those skilled in the art in view of the description ofthe best presently known mode of carrying out the invention and theindustrial applicability of the preferred embodiment as described hereinand as illustrated in the several figures of the drawings.

Social Networking Integration: The present invention can also provide incertain embodiments integrated social plugins with “live social feeds”from social networking giants Facebook™ and Twitter™, e.g., but notlimited to Facebook™ and Twitter™, into its website(s), which allowsSocial Shoppers to interact and share the latest ad links, promotions,online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services,entertainment shopping, penny auctions or online auctions,advertisements and affiliate advertising with their friends,acquaintances, strangers, family, business associates, and others.Tapping into the power of social networking users through socialnetworking integration will help users of the present invention connectwith thousands or millions of users around the world in real time.Twitter™ the latest social networking phenomenon, enables its users tosend and read other users messages called “tweets.” The presentinvention provides opportunities to use open source technology torapidly grow its Social Shoppers around the world by utilizing socialnetworking integration and developing social applications with feeds”from social networking sites Facebook™ and Twitter™ into its website andencouraging Social Shoppers to share the latest products or services ordeals with their friends in these popular social networks. A technique,method, apparatus, and system are described to provide relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data sets with correlated or relatedbroad or alternative categories to be displayed with web page contentfor view by a user. A composite correlation measure between twosocial/geo/promo link categories can be determined, where the compositecorrelation measure is one of a maximum, a minimum, or a combination ofseparate correlation criteria for a first social/geo/promo link categorywith a second social/geo/promo link category. In general, in one aspect,a method is provided. The method includes selecting a firstsocial/geo/promo link category for a first position of asocial/geo/promo link promotional data set. One or more secondsocial/geo/promo link categories are identified using one or morecorrelation criteria, where at least one second social/geo/promo linkcategory has one or more correlation criteria associated with the firstsocial/geo/promo link category.

Implementations can include one or more of the following features. Athird social/geo/promo link category can be selected for a secondposition of the social/geo/promo link promotional data set, where thethird social/geo/promo link category is different from the one or moreidentified second social/geo/promo link categories.

The social/geo/promo link promotional data set can be associated with aweb page, and the social/geo/promo link categories can be ordered byrelevance to the web page. Identifying one or more secondsocial/geo/promo link categories using one or more correlation criteriacan include identifying one or more social/geo/promo link categorieshaving a correlation measure that is less than a correlation threshold.The social/geo/promo link categories can be associated with one or morecategory identifiers, and at least one of the one or more correlationcriteria of a second social/geo/promo link category can be a measure ofthe correlation between a category identifier associated with the secondsocial/geo/promo link category and a category identifier associated withthe first social/geo/promo link category. At least one secondsocial/geo/promo link category can have a separate correlation measurefor at least one pair-wise combination of a category identifierassociated with the at least one second social/geo/promo link categoryand a category identifier associated with the first social/geo/promolink category. The at least one second social/geo/promo link categorycan have a composite correlation measure, where the compositecorrelation measure can be one of a maximum, a minimum, or a combinationof the separate correlation criteria for the at least one secondsocial/geo/promo link category. Identifying one or more social/geo/promolink categories having a correlation measure that is less than acorrelation threshold can include identifying one or moresocial/geo/promo link categories having a composite correlation measurethat is less than a correlation threshold.

In general, in one aspect, a method is provided. The method includesselecting a first social/geo/promo link category for a first position ofa social/geo/promo link promotional data set, where the firstsocial/geo/promo link category is in a set of candidate social/geo/promolink categories. For at least one empty position in the social/geo/promolink promotional data set, social/geo/promo link categories having acorrelation measure that is less than a correlation threshold areidentified, where the identified social/geo/promo link categories are inthe set of candidate social/geo/promo link categories, and at least onesocial/geo/promo link category in the set of candidate social/geo/promolink categories has one or more correlation criteria associated with amost recently selected social/geo/promo link category. For at least oneempty position in the social/geo/promo link promotional data set, a nextsocial/geo/promo link category for a next empty position of thesocial/geo/promo link promotional data set is selected, where the nextsocial/geo/promo link category is in the set of candidatesocial/geo/promo link categories.

Implementations can include one or more of the following features. Theidentified social/geo/promo link categories can be removed from the setof candidate social/geo/promo link categories. The selectedsocial/geo/promo link categories can be removed from the set ofcandidate social/geo/promo link categories. The social/geo/promo linkcategories in the set of candidate social/geo/promo link categories canbe associated with a web page, and the social/geo/promo link categoriesin the set of candidate social/geo/promo link categories can be orderedby relevance of the social/geo/promo link categories to the web page.

In general, in one aspect, a method is provided. The method includes,for a set of candidate social/geo/promo link categories and at least onesocial/geo/promo link promotional data set associated with a web page,selecting a first social/geo/promo link category for a first position ofthe social/geo/promo link promotional data set, where the firstsocial/geo/promo link category is in the set of candidatesocial/geo/promo link categories.

For at least one empty position in the social/geo/promo link promotionaldata set, social/geo/promo link categories having a correlation measurethat is greater than a correlation threshold are identified, where theidentified social/geo/promo link categories are in the set of candidatesocial/geo/promo link categories, and at least one social/geo/promo linkcategory in the set of candidate social/geo/promo link categories hasone or more correlation criteria associated with a most recentlyselected social/geo/promo link category. For at least one empty positionin the social/geo/promo link promotional data set, a nextsocial/geo/promo link category is selected for a next empty position ofthe social/geo/promo link promotional data set, where the nextsocial/geo/promo link category is in the set of candidatesocial/geo/promo link categories.

Implementations can include the following feature. The identifiedsocial/geo/promo link categories can be removed from the set ofcandidate social/geo/promo link categories before selecting a nextsocial/geo/promo link category for a next empty position of thesocial/geo/promo link promotional data set, and at least one removedidentified social/geo/promo link category can be added to the set ofcandidate social/geo/promo link categories before selecting a firstsocial/geo/promo link category for a first position of a nextsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set.

Other implementations are disclosed, including implementations directedto systems and computer-readable medium.

Particular embodiments of the subject matter described in thisspecification can be implemented to realize one or more of the followingadvantages. The quality of related social/geo/promo link promotionaldata sets and user experience can be improved by increasing the varietyof categories displayed in a single related social/geo/promo linkpromotional data set. When multiple related social/geo/promo linkpromotional data sets are to be displayed, individual relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data sets can include similarcategories while sets of categories can be diversified across themultiple related social/geo/promo link promotional data sets.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic and block diagram view of an electronicProduct, Good or Service with /Geospatial Mapping/Company-LocalInformation/Social Networking/Communities (“PGS-GM-CL/I-SN”) informationand/or product/good/service distribution system, according to anexemplary embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a simplified block diagram showing, in greater detail, adatabase server portion of the main server system shown in FIG. 1;

FIGS. 3A-3B illustrate a screen display defining an interface associatedwith a client system portion, according to an exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a simplified flowchart diagram view illustrating interactionsbetween the client system, and the main server system, according to anexemplary embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a simplified flowchart diagram view showing the steps forregistration of a new user on the main server system, according to anexemplary embodiment;

FIGS. 7-8 are simplified flowchart diagram views showing, in greaterdetail, the steps of updating the master category list, plugins, andbrand logo information, respectively, that are shown in block diagramform in FIG. 4, according to an exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 9 is a simplified flowchart diagram view showing, in greaterdetail, the step of updating advertising data that is shown in blockdiagram form in FIG. 4, according to an exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 10) is a simplified flowchart diagram view showing the stepsinvolved in obtaining a client script, according to an exemplaryembodiment;

FIGS. 11-12 are simplified flowchart diagram views showing alternateactions taken by the client system in response to selection by the userof a logo pane and an advertising pane, respectively, according toexemplary embodiments;

FIG. 13 is a simplified flowchart diagram view showing the stepsexecuted by the client system when a user selects an item fromPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information and/or data subcategory list, according to anexemplary embodiment;

FIG. 14 is a simplified flowchart diagram view showing the stepsexecuted by the client system when PGS-GM-CL/I-SN product, good and/orservice is selected and added to a cart, according to an exemplaryembodiment;

FIGS. 15A/B are flow diagrams of processes for controlling the number ofclicks to a clickable advertisement, according to exemplary embodiments;

FIG. 16 is another flow diagram of the process for controlling thenumber of clicks to a clickable advertisement, according to an exemplaryembodiment;

FIG. 17 illustrates a screen display defining an interface associatedwith a client system portion, according to an exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 18 is a schematic diagram of an exemplary implementation of ageospatial decision management system for implementing a geographicinformation system over a network.

FIG. 19 is a schematic diagram of a geospatial decision managementsystem depicting exemplary implementations of technical and managementinterface tools available to a client user.

FIG. 20 is a schematic diagram of additional components of a geospatialdecision management system for implementing access control topresentation of geospatial attributes within a network.

FIG. 21 is a flow diagram of exemplary operations for implementingaccess control to presentation of geospatial attributes within ageospatial decision management system.

FIG. 22 is a schematic diagram of an exemplary implementation of ageneral purpose computer system that that can be used to implementvarious aspects of a geospatial decision management system, includingaccess control.

FIG. 23 is flow chart and a list of representative products and servicesthat can be provided in combination with geospatial mapping, sociallyresponsible information, local, global and company information, socialnetworking, and charity/aid, according to the present invention. Aspresented in FIG. 24 (35, the present invention provides in one aspect adelivery system for a geospatial website for a multidimensionalrepresentation of information and/or scalable versions of web and mobiledevice content for an infrastructure and global platform that providesusers and members and businesses of all types and sizes with access tobroad markets for the delivery of ad links, promotions, online coupons,mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping,penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliateadvertising, e-commerce, media and entertainment, sports, personal andfinancial network, travel and hospitality services, real estate,educational services, ancillary services, advertisements and affiliateadvertising, service providers, social networking, social networkingcommunities, online dating, gaming, retail stores, virtual communitiesand virtual goods, microloans or microcredit, humanitarian aid andsupport other worldly causes through charitable donations (collectivelyreferred to as “Products, Goods & Services” as any product or service orsubgroup thereof) through combined Products, Goods and Service withGeospatial Mapping/Company-Local Information/SocialNetworking/Communities (“PGS-GM-CL/I-SN”) on a three dimensionalgeospatial platform using geospatial mapping technology.

FIG. 24 presents a flow chart showing a typical transaction for thepurchase online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services andmore that provides a portion of each sale shall be attributed tomicroloans or microcredit, humanitarian aid and support other worldlycauses through charitable donations or sustainable gifts. In addition,users will also be able to donate money to a worthy cause through theShopping Cart or purchasing a online coupons, mobile services, Products,Good and Services, entertainment shopping, penny auctions or onlineauctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising on the “Giving Back”Layer; “View Social Earth ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobileservices, Products, Goods & Services, with information, optionally aboutmicroloans or microcredit, humanitarian aid and support other worldlycauses through charitable donations or sustainable gifts that will helpthose in need around the world by geo-target location or anywhere in theworld on the present inventions unique Live View of the planet.

FIG. 25 is a block diagram of an example online advertising system.

FIG. 26A illustrates an example of a related social/geo/promo linkpromotional data set provided with web page content.

FIG. 26B illustrates an example of multiple related social/geo/promolink promotional data sets provided with the web page content.

FIG. 27A illustrates an example implementation of a relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set with correlated alternativecategories provided with web page content.

FIG. 27A illustrates an example implementation of multiple relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data sets with clustered categoriesprovided with web page content.

FIG. 28 is a block diagram of an example implementation of anadvertising management system of FIG. 1 that provides relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data sets with correlated broad andalternative categories.

FIG. 29 is a block diagram of an example implementation of thesocial/geo/promo link server of FIG. 4.

FIG. 30 is a flow diagram of an example process for providing a relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set with correlated broadcategories.

FIG. 31 is a flow diagram of an example process for providing multiplerelated social/geo/promo link promotional data sets with clusteredcategories.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention provides in one aspect a system and method forproviding combined technologies for social networking interactions usingtracking, predicting, and implementing online consumer communications,browsing behavior, buying patterns, and advertisements and affiliateadvertising, for ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobile services,Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, penny auctions oronline auctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising and serviceproviders, for targeting and filtering of ad links, promotions,Products, Goods & Services, for related company and local information ona three dimensional geospatial platform using geospatial mappingtechnology, company-local information, social networking, and socialnetworking communities (“PGS-GM-CL/I-SN”). The present inventionprovides one or more of a method, apparatus, or system to providerelated and integrated social networking, real time geospatial mapping,geo-target location or mobile device and receiving current location ofuser's electronic device and multiple points of interest, cloud-typeconfiguration storing and handling user data across multipleapplications, generating user behavior data and ad links, promotions(“social/geo/promo”) links on a website for any product, good orservice, including social/geo/promo data sets for user customized visualdisplays showing 3D map presentations with correlated or related broador alternative categories of social/geo/promo links to be displayed withweb page content for view by an end user. In one implementation, amethod is provided. The method includes selecting a firstsocial/geo/promo link category for a first position of asocial/geo/promo link promotional data set to be displayed on aninteractive 3D geospatial mapping display for promotion or sale ofonline products, goods or services with social networking and companyand local information. One or more second social/geo/promo linkcategories are identified using one or more correlation criteria, whereat least one second social/geo/promo link category has one or morecorrelation criteria associated with the first social/geo/promo linkcategory. The present invention provides in one aspect a system andmethod for providing social networking and social networkinginteractions using combined social behavior tracking, onlinesurveillance and web bot software technologies via a mobile device orcomputer for tracking online consumer behavior and data, cookies,embedded advertisements, predicting online consumer behavior, buyingpatterns, monitoring online activity, location, online communications,search inquires, social networking, social plugins, ad links,promotions, social applications, purchasing, behavior and buyingpatterns, consumer address books & contact lists, blogs, chat rooms,friends, acquaintances and strangers, instant messaging, text chat,internet forum, service providers, travel and hospitality services, realestate, educational services, ancillary services (as defined herein oras known in the art) and delivery system for behavior targeting andfiltering of ad links, promotions, mobile services, Products, Goods &Services, for related company information on a three dimensionalgeospatial platform using multi-dimensional and scalable geospatialmapping associated with entities providing and/or members of the serviceand/or social networking for a geospatial website (accessible via amobile device or computer) for a multidimensional representation ofinformation and/or scalable versions of web and mobile device contentfor the delivery of Products, Goods & Services with /GeospatialMapping/Company-Local Information/Social Networking/Communities(“PGS-GM-CL/I-SN”) on a three dimensional geospatial platform usinggeospatial mapping technology.

DEFINITIONS

As used herein the term “promoting” or “promoting” means providing anytype of information relating to any product, goods or service,including, but not limited to providing an end user with one or more ofpublicity, advertising, auctions, bidding, coupons, discounts, companyor local information, affiliate or related company information, localinformation, products, goods, or services, and related socialnetworking, profiles, online behavior and prediction, scalablegeospatial mapping, customized end user webpages or displays, and enduser interactions, wherein the providing of information is through anyform of electronic communication involving the use of one or more of acomputer related system, computer readable medium, internet access,mobile device, computer related access, or other electroniccommunication.

Giving Back: Social Shoppers will optionally be able to help those whohave been impacted by a natural disaster, live in impoverishedconditions or are less fortunate in the world. Social Earth plans toprovide microloans or microcredit, humanitarian aid and support otherworldly causes in developing countries and charities in theircommunities and local and global causes around our planet and otherrelief efforts for natural and man made disasters including devastatingearthquakes and/or tsunamis. For example, fly to Japan and view a videoon the Japan relief effort. By tapping into the power of socialnetworking and bringing together a collective consciousness withmillions of Social Shoppers, Social Earth plans to raise awareness forglobal issues and millions of dollars for microloans or microcredit,humanitarian aid and support other worldly causes.

Products, Goods & Services means any product, goods or service describedherein, or as known in the art: Non-limiting examples of Products, Goods& Services provided by the present invention, can include, but are notlimited to: search engines; online ad links, promotions, online coupons,mobile services, entertainment shopping, penny auctions or onlineauctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising or services,including without limitation, for such items as e-commerce, media andentertainment, sports, personal & financial network, travel &hospitality services, real estate, educational services, ancillaryservices, service providers, online dating, gaming, retail stores,virtual communities and virtual goods, real estate information on markettrends, mortgage quotes auto loans, insurance and home equity loans;mortgage rates to refinance your home, lender quotes, real estateproperties, advertisers, service providers and business owners, autoquotes, car loans; messaging, user profiles; RSS links with e.g, newsfeeds, weather, sports, media and entertainment news and financialmarkets, real estate (e.g. vacant land, residential, commercial,recreational, retail, shopping malls, hotels, motels, golf courses,resorts, marinas, industrial, vacation, time shares, condominiums,multifamily, and other types of real estate, etc.), educationalservices, ancillary services e.g. (e.g. brokers, agents, relocationservices, internet marketing, concierge, transportation, entertainment,travel and hospitality services, lenders, appraisers, education,developers, contractors, inspectors, home improvements/remodeling,basement designs, landscaping, home warranties, insurance, indoor andoutdoor furniture, fixtures, windows, siding, roofing, heating/cooling,solar, plumbing, electrical, mechanical, and similar types) and deliverysystem for behavior targeting and filtering of ad links, promotions.

Virtual Advertisements: Non-limiting examples of virtual advertisementsservices provided by the present invention, can include, but are notlimited to the following: Providing virtual online advertisements,digital billboards and other products, goods or services that connectsmillions of users and members from around the world on a threedimensional geospatial platform using geospatial mapping technology.

Virtual Penny Auction or Online Auction Market: Non-limiting examples ofvirtual auctions services provided by the present invention, caninclude, but are not limited to the following. Providing aninfrastructure and global platform that provides users and businesses ofall types and sizes with access to broad markets of penny auctions oronline auctions promoting the sale of products, goods & services withmillions of users and members from around the world on a threedimensional geospatial platform using geospatial mapping technology.

Virtual E-commerce Market: Non-limiting examples of e-commerce servicesprovided by the present invention, can include, but are not limited tothe following. Providing an infrastructure and global platform thatprovides users and members and businesses of all types and sizes withaccess to broad markets of e-commerce and other products, goods orservices that connects millions of users and members from around theworld on a three dimensional geospatial platform using geospatialmapping technology.

Virtual Media and Entertainment Market: Non-limiting examples of virtualmedia and entertainment services provided by the present invention, caninclude, but are not limited to the following. Providing an immersive,interactive virtual reality to media and entertainment and otherproducts, goods or services that connects millions of users and membersvia the Internet with thousands of videos, games, virtual realitytelevision and other amusement applications that connects millions ofusers and members from around the world on a three dimensionalgeospatial platform using geospatial mapping technology.

Virtual Sports Market: Non-limiting examples of virtual sports servicesprovided by the present invention, can include, but are not limited tothe following. Providing an immersive, interactive virtual reality tosports, media and entertainment, sporting events, stadiums, venues,athletes, players, coaches, scores and updates, scoreboards, sportsmemorabilia, merchandise, advertisements, popular sports around theworld such as Summer & Winter Olympics, baseball, basketball, cricket,cycling, golf, hockey, football (American), football (soccer), World CupSoccer, motorsports, rowing, rugby, swimming, tennis, RSS links, videosand other products, goods or services that connects millions of usersand members from around the world on a three dimensional geospatialplatform using geospatial mapping technology.

Virtual Personal & Financial Network Market: Non-limiting examples ofvirtual personal & financial network services provided by the presentinvention, can include, but are not limited to the following: Providingan infrastructure and global platform that provides users and membersand businesses of all types and sizes with access to broad markets ofvirtual personal & financial network of service providers, products orservices that connects millions of users and members from around theworld on a three dimensional geospatial platform using geospatialmapping technology.

Virtual Travel & Hospitality Market: Non-limiting examples of virtualtravel & hospitality services provided by the present invention, caninclude, but are not limited to the following: Providing travel &hospitality services and other products, goods or services with apowerful network of thousand of travel & hospitality service providerse.g. travel agents, hotels, motels, resorts, airlines, entertainment,transportation, and other related products, goods & services, etc. andother professionals that connects millions of users and members fromaround the world on a three dimensional geospatial platform usinggeospatial mapping technology.

Virtual Real Estate Market: Non-limiting examples of virtual real estateservices provided by the present invention, can include, but are notlimited to the following: Providing information about various types ofreal estate, ancillary services and other products, goods or serviceswith a powerful network of thousands of real estate professionals,ancillary services and other affiliates that connects millions of usersand members from around the world on a three dimensional geospatialplatform using geospatial mapping technology.

Virtual Service Providers: Non-limiting examples of service providersprovided by the present invention, can include, but are not limited to:allowing service providers and business owners' to reach users andmembers and consumers online, offering advertising opportunities forservice providers, business owners and affiliates for business services,healthcare services, specialty financial services, consumer products,specialty retail and media and entertainment, lenders, mortgagecompanies and the like; providing advertisements that can appear onconsumers' property search results and connecting thousands of serviceproviders and business owners for business services, healthcareservices, specialty financial services, consumer products, specialtyretail and media and entertainment, lenders, mortgage companies lendersand mortgage companies to provide financing quotes to millions of usersand members and consumers online; providing real estate marketinformation and mortgage quotes for, e.g., purchase of a new home,refinance, consolidating debt, auto loans, insurance quotes or homeequity loans and other products, goods & services, advertisers, serviceproviders and business owners from around the world on a threedimensional geospatial platform using geospatial mapping technology.

Virtual Social Networking Market: Non-limiting examples of virtualsocial networking services provided by the present invention, caninclude, but are not limited to the following: Providing a socialnetworking platform with social networking and social networkingcommunities and a means for users and members to interact i.e. userprofile, social links, share interests and/or activities, socialplugins, ad links, promotions, social applications, messaging, onlinecommunications, viewing public & private user profiles, blogs, chatrooms, other entertainment, events and interests, emailing and instantmessaging, games, groups, etc. for members and other products, goods orservices that connects millions of users and members from around theworld on a three dimensional geospatial platform using geospatialmapping technology.

Virtual Online Dating Market: Non-limiting examples of virtual onlinedating provided by the present invention, can include, but are notlimited to the following: Providing an online community for dating,gathering and other types of services for users and members to interacti.e. user profiles, viewing public & private user profiles, onlinecommunications, messaging, social links, social plugins, socialapplications, blogs, chat rooms, sharing interests and/or activities,entertainment, events and interests, emailing and instant messaging,games, groups, etc. and other products, goods or services that connectsmillions of users and members from around the world on a threedimensional geospatial platform using geospatial mapping technology.

Virtual Social Gaming Market: Non-limiting examples of social gamingservices provided by the present invention, can include, but are notlimited to, gaming and social sites, add-ons for online games, digitalgifts and other items, online virtual communities and similar or relatedforms of entertainment, virtual real estate, social networks, searchingonline for different types of real estate and other products, goods &services, educational services, ancillary services that connectsmillions of users and members from around the world on a threedimensional geospatial platform using geospatial mapping technology.

Virtual Retail Stores Market: Non-limiting examples of virtual retailstores services provided by the present invention, can include, but arenot limited to, virtual retail stores. Proving users and members andbusiness owners with an online retail store and ability to create acentral shopping location where buyers can learn about you and all theproducts that you sell. Providing online retail stores for members andbusiness owners and other products, goods & services, advertisers,service providers and business owners that connects millions of usersand members from around the world on a three dimensional geospatialplatform using geospatial mapping technology.

Virtual Communities Market: Non-limiting examples of virtual communitiesservices by the present invention, can include, but are not limited to,virtual worlds. Virtual worlds are online communities in whichindividuals are able to interact with each other in real time, and caninclude v-businesses, which is virtual commerce of goods and servicesfor use in these virtual worlds. Virtual communities have thousands andmillions of members, namely people who join the virtual communities toexchange information, gain social support, or to seek entertainment andfriendship. Providing users and members and business owners with anonline virtual community and other products, goods & services,advertisers, service providers and business owners that connectsmillions of users and members and members from around the world on athree dimensional geospatial platform using geospatial mappingtechnology.

Virtual Goods Market: Non-limiting examples of products, goods &services provided by the present invention, can include, but are notlimited to, virtual goods, which can relate to virtual worlds andmultiplayer online role playing games (MMO or MMORPG), e.g., likeEntropia and Second Life, for members and other products, services,service providers and businesses that connects millions of users andmembers via the Internet with thousands and millions of members fromaround the world on a three dimensional geospatial platform usinggeospatial mapping technology.

Microloans or Microcredit Market: Non-limiting examples of microloan ormicrocredit services provided by the present invention, can include, butare not limited to, information about microloans or microcredit, whichis an extension of very small loans to those in poverty designed to spurentrepreneurship. Providing information about microloans or microcreditto men and women that lack collateral, steady employment and verifiablecredit history and in impoverished conditions around the world and otherproducts, goods & services, advertisers, service providers and businessowners that connects millions of users and members with organizationsthat support disadvantaged men and women from around the world on athree dimensional geospatial platform using geospatial mappingtechnology.

Humanitarian Aid Market: Non-limiting examples of humanitarian aidservices provided by the present invention, can include, but are notlimited to, humanitarian aid for poverty, natural disasters and man-madedisasters. The primary objective of humanitarian aid is to save lives,provide food, clean water and shelter to alleviate suffering andmaintain human dignity. Providing humanitarian aid to those inimpoverished conditions and suffering from around the world from naturaldisasters and man made disasters and including animals, animal rightsand protecting endangered species and wildlife from extinction and thatconnects millions of users and members and members with organizationsthat support underprivileged men, women and children and includinganimals, animal rights and protecting endangered species and wildlifefrom extinction from around the world from poverty, natural disastersand man made disasters on a three dimensional geospatial platform usinggeospatial mapping technology.

Charitable Donations or Sustainable Gifts Market: Non-limiting examplesof charitable donations or sustainable gifts services provided by thepresent invention, can include, but are not limited to, charitabledonations or sustainable gifts to benefit those in need from around theworld for such categories as: hunger & poverty, education & play,immunization, water, nutrition, health & emergency. In addition, SocialEarth supports saving the rain forest, lives and finding cures forinfectious diseases, etc. A donation or sustainable gift may takevarious forms, including cash or a Social Earth Coupon, can include, butare not limited to, a goat, sheep, chicken, water buffalo, cow, stove,carpentry tools, class supplies, health clinic, food, clothing, water,medical or other supplies, services, new or used goods includingclothing, toys, food and vehicles. It may also consist of emergency,relief or humanitarian aid items, development aid support and medicalcare needs as i.e. blood or organs for transplant. Providing charitabledonations or sustainable gifts to those in need in impoverishedconditions for such items as food, clothing, education, health orbenefit a cause around the world and other products, services, serviceproviders and business owners that connects millions of users andmembers and members with thousands of local communities, charitableorganizations and foundations from around the world on a threedimensional geospatial platform using geospatial mapping technology.

A social networking service is an online service, platform, or site thatfocuses on building and reflecting of social networks or socialrelations among people, who, for example, share interests and/oractivities. A social network service essentially consists of arepresentation of each user (often a profile), his/her social links, anda variety of additional services. Most social network services are webbased and provide means for users to interact over the Internet, such ase-mail, blogs, chat rooms and instant messaging. Online communityservices are sometimes considered as a social network service, though ina broader sense, social network service usually means anindividual-centered service, whereas online community services aregroup-centered. Social networking sites allow users to share ideas,activities, events, and interests within their individual networks. Themain types of social networking services are those, which containcategory places (such as former school year or classmates), means toconnect with friends (usually with self-description pages) and arecommendation system linked to trust. Other non-limiting examples caninclude one or more of the following, e.g., w Facebook™ and Twitter™widely used worldwide, Nexopia (mostly in Canada); Bebo, VKontakte, Hi5,Hyves (mostly in The Netherlands), Draugiem.lv (mostly in Latvia),StudiVZ (mostly in Germany), iWiW (mostly in Hungary), Tuenti (mostly inSpain), Nasza-Klasa (mostly in Poland), Decayenne, Tagged, XING, Badooand Skyrock in parts of Europe; Orkut and Hi5 in South America andCentral America; and Mixi, Multiply, Orkut, Wretch, renren and Cyworldin Asia and the Pacific Islands and LinkedIn and Orkut are very popularin India.

A social network is a social structure made up of individuals (ororganizations) called “nodes”, which are tied (connected) by one or morespecific types of interdependency, such as friendship, kinship, commoninterest, financial exchange, dislike, sexual relationships, orrelationships of beliefs, knowledge or prestige.

Geospatial analysis is an approach to applying statistical analysis andother informational techniques to geographically based data. Suchanalysis employs spatial software and analytical methods withterrestrial or geographic datasets, including geographic informationsystems and geomatics. Google Earth™ is a non-limiting example of theapplication of geospatial analysis, where it provides a virtual globe,map and geographical information program. Google Earth™ is a virtualglobe, map and geographic information program that layered withgeographic information. Google Earth™ is available for Android, Windows2000, XP, Vista, 7, Mac OS X, Blackberry Storm, iOS and Linux. GoogleEarth™ provides a wealth of topographical information about our planetEarth on a variety of subjects. Google Earth™ lets you fly anywhere toview satellite imagery, maps, terrain, 3D buildings, galaxies in outerspace, and the depths of the ocean. With Google Earth™ 6, users canexplore the streets in 3D like never before. Fly from outer space downto the streets with the new Street View and easily navigate your wayaround. Google Earth™ has also been able to assist in promotingawareness of global problems such as Hurricane Katrina, the war in Iraqand photos of the post Japan earthquake panoramas in Google Earth™.Google Earth™ has many “layers” of data, including videos, photos,Wikipedia, real-time weather, real-time traffic, 3D buildings, GPStracks and more. The release of free Web mapping applications opened upprintable mapping to mainstream Internet users. Google™ also releasedfree APIs for their Google Earth™ platform, allowing users to geo-locateand map their own data. Google is apparently working on a faster, easierGoogle Earth™ plug-in download as well as an improved Google Earth™mobile app. The Google Earth™ API is a free service, available for anyweb site that is free to consumers. The Plug-in and its JavaScript APIallows users to place a version of Google Earth™ into web pages. The APIdoes not have all the features of the full Google Earth™ Application butenables sophisticated 3D map applications to be built, including use forGM of the present invention. The Google Earth™ Plug-in and itsJavaScript API let you embed Google Earth™, a true 3D digital globe,into your web pages. Using the API you can draw markers and lines, drapeimages over the terrain, add 3D models, or load KML files, allowing youto build sophisticated 3D map applications.

In marketing, a coupon is a ticket or document that can be exchanged fora financial discount or rebate when purchasing a product. Customarily,coupons are issued by manufacturers of consumer-packaged goods or byretailers, to be used in retail stores as a part of sales ad links,promotions. They are often widely distributed through mail, magazines,newspapers, the Internet, directly from the retailer, and mobile devicessuch as cell phones. Since only price conscious consumers are likely tospend the time to claim the savings, coupons function as a form of pricediscrimination, enabling retailers to offer a lower price only to thoseconsumers who would otherwise go elsewhere. In addition, coupons canalso be targeted selectively to regional markets in which pricecompetition is great. Internet Coupons: Online retailers often refer tocoupons as “coupon codes,” “promotional codes,” “promotion codes,”“discount codes,” “key codes,” “promo codes,” “surplus codes,” “portablecodes,” “shopping codes,” “voucher codes,” “reward codes” “discountvouchers” or “source codes.” Internet coupons typically provide forreduced cost or free shipping, a specific dollar or percentage discount,or some other offer to encourage consumers to purchase specific productsor to purchase from specific retailers. Because paper coupons would bedifficult to redeem, typically secret words or codes are distributed forconsumers to type in at checkout. Marketers can use different codes fordifferent channels our groups in order to distinguish response rates.

The present invention can in one embodiment gather basic demographicprofile information including the user's current location and behaviordata as they purchase and/or view ad links, promotions, online coupons,mobile services, Products, Goods or Services, entertainment shopping,penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliateadvertising or services on Social Earth, which can be sent toadvertisers or otherwise capitalized by the users of the invention. Bygathering this valuable demographic information, the present inventionprovides the ability to target market to Social Shoppers based uponspecific location, demographic profile and selected social layer. Thisdata can also include GPS for mobile user, which can be sent toadvertisers servers for target mobile marketing based upon the users'location and buying preferences. The present invention can also providefast access by, when visiting a website of a user of the presentinvention, Social Shoppers can access as easily as entering their emailaddress and select a city to access the site. The present invention canuse email addresses and selected city for future email marketing. Forexample, In just 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 or other number of clicks, SocialShoppers are ready to use the inventions website after they download aGoogle Earth™ or similar plug-in, or visit the Apple™, Android™, orsimilar marketplace for their smart phone,

Social Networking Integration: The present invention can also provide incertain embodiments social networking links, tracking, collection and/oranalysis, including integrated social plugins with “live social feeds”from social networking sites, e.g., but not limited to Facebook™ andTwitter™, into its website(s), which allows Social Shoppers to interactand share the latest product or services deals with their friends,family, business associates, and others. Tapping into social networkingusers through social networking integration will help users and membersof the present invention connect with thousands or millions of users andmembers. Twitter™ the latest social networking phenomenon, enables itsusers and members to send and read other users and members' messagescalled “tweets.” The present invention provides opportunities to useopen source technology to rapidly grow its Social Shoppers around theworld by utilizing social networking integration with “live socialfeeds” from social networking sites into its website and encouragingSocial Shoppers to share the latest ad links, promotions, onlinecoupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainmentshopping, penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements andaffiliate advertising with their friends on Social Earth or in thesepopular social networks.

Social Software Applications. Social software applications includecommunication tools and interactive tools. Communication tools typicallyhandle the capturing, storing and presentation of communications,usually written but increasingly including audio and video as well,which can also include tracking and predicting of online communicationsvia a mobile device or computer with respect to third party applicationsand outside social networks such as e.g. Facebook™, Twitter™, Skype™ andother social networks around the world. Interactive tools handlemediated interactions between a pair or group of users. They focus onestablishing and maintaining a connection amount users, facilitating themechanics of conversation and talk.

Instant Messaging: An instant messaging application or client allows oneto communicate with another person over a network in real time, inrelative privacy. One can add friends to a contact or buddy list byentering the person's email address or messenger ID.

Text Chat: Internet Relay Chat (IRC) and other online chat technologiesallow users to join and communicate with many people at once,publically.

Groupware: Groupware software allows subjects to share data such asfiles, photos, text, etc.

Internet Forums: Internet forums allow users to post a “topic” forothers to review. Other users can view the topic and post their owncomments in a linear fashion, one after the other.

Wikis: A wiki is a web page whose content can be edited by its visitors.

Blogs: Blogs, short for web logs, are online journals for a particularperson. The owner will post a message periodically, allowing others tocomment. Topics often include the owner's daily life, views on politicsor a particular subject important to them.

Prediction Markets: Many predictions market tools have become availablethat make it easy to predict and bet on future events. This is a moreformal version of social interaction, although it qualifies as a robusttype of social software.

Social Networking Services: Social networking services allow people tocome together online around shared interests, hobbies or causes.

Social Engine: Social engine refers to a web based framework andplatform for developing custom social apps as well as hosting them. Asocial engine acts as a web operating system for developing all kinds ofsocial networking services and projects.

Social Guides: A social guide recommending places to visit or containsinformation about places in the real world such as coffee shops,restaurants and wife hotspots, etc.

Social Bookmarking: Some web sites allow users to post their list ofbookmarks or favorite website for others to search and view them.

Social Cataloging: Social cataloging is a software aimed towardsacademics. It allows the user to post a citation for an article found onthe Internet or a website, online database like Academic Search Premieror LexisNexis.

Social Online Storage: Social online storage applications allow theirusers to collaboratively create file archives containing files of anytype. Files can either be edited online or from a local computer whichhas access to the storage system.

Social Plugins: A button placed on a website and blogs that members canclick to share their interests in a site with their friends. A Like Boxcan also be added to a web page that provides a scrolling window intothe organization's Facebook™ page. The Like Button and Like Box arecalled “social plugins.”

Virtual Worlds: Virtual worlds are services where it is possible to meetand interact with other people in a virtual environment reminiscent ofthe real world. Thus the term virtual reality. Typically, the usermanipulates an avatar through the world, interacting with others usingchat or voice chat.

Massively Multiplayer Online Games (MMOGs): MMOG's are virtual worldsthat add various sorts of point systems, levels, competition and winnersand losers to virtual world simulation.

Computer Surveillance: Computer surveillance is the act of performsurveillance of computer or mobile activity and of data stored on a harddrive or being transferred over the Internet.

Network Surveillance: The vast majority of computer surveillanceinvolves the monitoring of data and traffic on the Internet. In theUnited States for example, under the Commissions Assistance For LawEnforcement Act, all phone calls and broadband interne traffic (emails,web traffic, instant messaging, etc.) are required to be available forunimpeded real-time monitoring by Federal law enforcement agencies.

Penny Auctions or Online Auctions: Is an auction where bidderspay-per-bid for an item and the time increases with each bid.

Web Bot: Web bot is a software program that is claimed to be able topredict future events by tracking keywords entered on the Internet.Internet bots monitor articles, blogs, forums and other forms ofInternet chatter. Words in the lexicon are assigned numeric values foremotional quantifiers such as duration, impact, immediacy, intensity andothers.

One example of an aspect of the invention is a geospatial website thataggregates, inter alia, ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobileservices, Products, Goods & Services, for related company information ona three dimensional geospatial platform using multi-dimensionalrepresentation of information and/or scalable versions of web and mobiledevice for the delivery of ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobileservices, Products, Goods & Services, from around the world and/orshowcases them, e.g., in their actual, physical location on the websiteslive view of Earth in combination with social networking and/or sociallyconscious information and/or activities.

Social Earth will provide information and links to some of the top realestate websites and integrate real estate information into its websitefrom third party websites such as, but not limited to, Yahoo RealEstate, Zillow, Realtor.com, Trulia, MSN Real Estate, Homes.com, AOLReal Estate, Rent.com, ZipRealty, MyNewPlace, LoopNet, Apartment Guide,Re/Max Real Esate, Apartments.com, Welchet.com, Redfin, HomeFinder,Listingbook Services, Rentals.com, ForRent.com and other real estaterelated websites.

The present invention addresses problems and/or shortcomings of currentonline products or services, retail stores, virtual communities andvirtual goods, and will provide optional information about microloans ormicrocredit, humanitarian aid and support other worldly causes throughcharitable donations or sustainable gifts to help those in need, whichshould also provide socially conscious information about the companiesthat supply ad links, promotions, mobile services, Products, Goods &Services, so that consumers can see where the companies and/or storesare located and can find out information about the companies,communities they are located in, what interaction and help they provideto communities and/or other economic and/or socially responsibleactivities, and to associate the geographical and other geospatiallyavailable information connecting also by the use of integrated socialmedia, which combination is not current provided and/or available. Asusers and members and/or subscribers of the website, (e.g., “SocialShoppers”) shop the world for ad links, promotions, mobile services,Products, Goods & Services, around the world.

A delivery system for a host geospatial website (accessible via a mobiledevice or computer) can provide for a multidimensional representation ofinformation and/or scalable version of web content for an infrastructureand global platform that provides users and members and businesses ofall types and sizes with access to broad markets for the delivery of adlinks, promotions, online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goods &Services, and optional information about microloans or microcredit,humanitarian aid and support other worldly causes through charitabledonations or sustainable gifts on a three dimensional geospatialplatform using geospatial mapping technology.

The use of geospatial mapping for associating information to specificplaces can included, but it not limited to, one or more of: Live linksto places and events; Data on the landscape; Zoom to birds-eye and humanscale views; 3D custom audio/visual content; Interactive 360 panoramas;Fly-through tours with content, narration, music; Stunning imagery andvideos; 3D buildings and landscaping, e-commerce and mobile bankingtools and hooks; Advertising on the landscape; Advanced search forprivate and public information; Social networking integration;Self-posting for uploading user generated content; Custom tools, mobileapps and widgets; and the like. Connecting buyers and sellers withProducts, Goods & Services with users and members known as “SocialShoppers” in real-time on a geographical area across multiple sociallayers that are displayed as graphic animated color overlays on a threedimensional geospatial platform using geospatial mapping technology.”The invention can also provide mobile payment method and/or system foreffectuating an online payment through a computer or a mobile device tocomplete an e-commerce and mobile banking transaction on athree-dimensional geospatial platform using geospatial-mappingtechnology.

The invention can further provide in one aspect geospatial websiteaggregates buyers and sellers with ad links, promotions, online coupons,mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping,penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliateadvertising from merchants and sellers around the world and/or showcasesthem in their actual, physical location on the websites unique live viewof Earth. around the world. Social Shoppers can to use “a mobile devicepayment method and/or system” for effectuating an online payment througha mobile device equipped carrier and/or a mobile device equipped bankusing a mobile users device or computer in connection with an e-commerceand mobile banking transactions on the host geospatial website or mobiledevice (e.g., mobile telephone, PDA, laptop computer, etc.); whereinusers and members create and/or maintain a rich-media application via ageospatial mapping platform via the Internet comprising: mobile bankingand/or electronic payments.

Social Earth Mobile allowing Social Shoppers to receive ad links,promotions, online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services,based upon their precise location. Mobile apps for smart phones (e.g.,but not limited to, Android™ and tablets, e.g., iPhone™, iPod Touch™ andiPad™) are provided that will allow Social Shoppers to receive ad links,promotions, online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services,based upon their online activities, precise location, GPS, onlinecommunications, search inquiries, social networking, social networkingcommunities, social plugins, ad links, promotions, social applications,entertainment shopping, penny auctions or online auctions, bidding,bidding behavior, bidding results, advertisements and affiliateadvertising, purchasing, behavior, buying patterns and other criteria,such as shopping or interest preferences.

With Social Earth Mobile, Social Shoppers can explore the same 3Dimagery and terrain as on the desktop version. Users will be able to flyto their current location or anywhere in the world by typing in theaddress in the search bar. With a touch of a button, users will be ableto Pan, zoom, and tilt their view as they virtually travel around theglobe. Users will be able to Search for people, cities, places andbusinesses around the world and View many layers of geographicinformation and other information on a three-dimensional geospatialplatform using geospatial-mapping technology. The invention providesopportunities to connect buyers and sellers and reach people at thepoint of shopping through GPS—a benefit both to shoppers and merchants.The delivery system for a host geospatial website can provide for amultidimensional representation of information and/or sealable versionof web content for an infrastructure and global platform that providesusers and members and businesses of all types and sizes with access tobroad markets for the delivery of ad links, promotions, online coupons,mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, for related companyinformation on a three dimensional geospatial platform using geospatialmapping technology. A host geospatial website can include realisticvirtual landscape using satellite and/or aerial photography that caninclude any content and many layers of web based information, ad links,promotions, online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services,entertainment shopping, penny auctions or online auctions,advertisements and affiliate advertising and mobile banking links,social networking, social networking communities and/or advertisements(including but not limited to embedded advertisements) for a richer userexperience. A host geospatial website shall store images, web-basedcontent, social data and/or share “live social feeds” from socialnetworking giants Facebook™ and Twitter™ and/or other communications inreal-time.

More specifically, it relates to a method for users and members known as“Social Shoppers” to effectuate banking and/or electronic payments via acomputer or mobile device; accessing a user account, engaging in mobilesocial activities and/or viewing available options via a threedimensional geospatial mapping platform using geospatial mappingtechnology.

The present invention thus provides alternative social networkinginteractions, as functions or content, access, systems, and the like, asknown in the art, or as described herein, which can include, but are notlimited to, access to trusted user-generated content using socialnetworks, accessing information from multiple networks, social graphs,and content sites, accumulating social relation information for socialnetwork services, adaptive packaging of network resources, adaptivesocial network management, advertising products to groups within socialnetworks, aggregation of social network data, aggregation,standardization and extension of social networking contacts to enhance atelevision consumer experience, application of social networking data,assigning access privileges in a social network, associative memoryoperators, methods and computer program products for using a socialnetwork for predictive marketing analysis, automatically locatingweb-based social network members, automatically manage socialconnections, auto-shared photo album, biometric social networking,blocking objectionable communications in a social network, broadcastnotifications using social networking systems, clarifying search resultsusing social-networking information, collective socializing using amobile social network, collectively giving gifts in a social networkenvironment, commercializing ideas or inventions, communicating betweenusers, community detection, community translation on a social network,confirming an association in a web-based social network, consumptionmanagement systems and methods integrated with social networks, contentsharing across enterprise social networks, contingent rights exchangeassociated with a social network, controlling access of user informationusing social-networking information, coordinated location awarebrokering of social networks, correlation of psycho-demographic data andsocial network data to initiate an action, creating a social network mapof non-voice communications, creating a social-networking onlinecommunity, cross-network social networking application architecture,defined searching and web crawling, defining user relationships in asocial networking environment, determining a group preference in asocial network, device, system, and method of generating location-basedsocial networks, discerning human intent based on user-generatedmetadata, discovering, creating, using, and managing social networkcircuits, displaying demographic information of members discussingtopics in a forum, dynamically generating a privacy summary, dynamicallygenerating segmented community flyers, dynamically managing a socialnetwork group, dynamically providing a news feed about a user of asocial network, elements of an enterprise event feed, email confirmationpage for social network notifications, enabling location-dependent valueexchange and object of interest identification, enabling messagingbetween users of different social networks and between users of socialnetworks and users of other communication systems, enterprise socialgraph and contextual information presentation, establishing a socialnetwork system based on motif, social status and social attitude,facilitate real time communications between members of a social network,feature propagation, federation and interoperability between socialnetworks, feeding updates to landing pages of users of an online socialnetwork from external sources, file sharing based on social network,friends toolbar for a virtual social venue, generating a feed of storiespersonalized for members of a social network, generating segmentedcommunity flyers in a social networking system, giving gifts anddisplaying assets in a social network environment, graphicalrepresentation of social network vitality, highlighting emailrecipients, hosting a social network that enables granular management ofthe privacy of posted information, hot video prediction system based onuser interests social network, incentivize transactions to enhancesocial goodness, incorporation of variables into textual content,information handling system low power network communications,information security for recovery based social networking, integrating asocial network and data repository to enable map creation, integratingsocial contact identifiers into wagering games, integrating socialnetworking with financial services, integrating social networks andwagering games, integrating updates into a social-networking service,interacting with social networking in an internet protocol televisionsystem, leveraging a social graph from a social network for socialcontext in other systems, leveraging information in a social network forinferential targeting of advertisements, managing information aboutrelationships in a social network via a social timeline, managinginformation flow between members of an online social network, managingorganizational resources, marketing system having multiple fulfillmentchannels and a method for directing a personalized invitation to membersof a social network, markup language for incorporating social networkingsystem information by an external website, measuring social capitalindex in an online social network, mobile device and method of operatingsame to interface content provider website, mobile network operatorcontrolled content to mobile subscribers using social networkingmessages, mobile social networking enabled by bar codes, mobile socialnetworking system and method, modeling social networks using analyticmeasurements of online social media content, modification of socialnetworks via design codes, monetizing a social network platform,monitoring activity of a specified user on internet-based socialnetworks, multi-governance social networking groups, name conflictresolution, name resolution, networking across web based andtelecommunication based portals, observing responses to invitations byusers in a web-based social network, offering discounts, online adlinks, promotions through a social network-based platform, onlinepromotions through social media networks, organization of a contact listbased on social network context, page caching for rendering dynamic webpages, page rendering for dynamic web pages, personalized platform foraccessing internet applications, platform for providing a social contextto software applications, predictive resource identification and phaseddelivery of structured documents, presenting social networking eventsvia a television receiver, processing social relation oriented service,profile rating and verification system, promoting shopping informationon a network based social platform, providing an answer to a questionfrom a social network site using a separate messaging site, providingsocial networking content, publish/subscribe mashups for socialnetworks, random voice communications through a social network, rankingsearch results using social-networking information, ranking searchresults based on the frequency of access on the search results by usersof a social-networking system, ranking search results based on thefrequency of clicks on the search results by members of a social networkwho are within a predetermined degree of separation, ranking socialnetwork objects, real time media-based social network notifications,recommending new individuals to be invited into a confirmed socialnetwork based on mined social data, recording usage of an online socialnetwork, relationship characterization and utilization from a user'ssocial networks, remote work sessions, reputation evaluation of onlineusers in a social networking scheme, resource management of socialnetwork applications, scoring individual network competitiveness andnetwork effect in an online social network, searching data in a socialnetwork to provide an answer to an information request, selectingadvertisements for output by a television receiver based on socialnetwork profile data, self funding emergency and other notificationsystem, setting cookies in conjunction with phased delivery ofstructured documents, sharing digital content on a social network,sharing social network information, sharing social networking content ina conference user interface, single login procedure for accessing socialnetwork information across multiple external systems, situation-awaread-hoc social interaction, social behavior analysis and inferring socialnetworks for a recommendation system, social capital, social context forinter-media objects, social graph search system, social graph thatincludes web pages outside of a social networking system, social homepage, social marketing, social mobilized content sharing, social networkanalysis with prior knowledge and non-negative tensor factorization,social network construction based on data association, social networkmarketing plan monitoring method and system, social network messagecategorization systems and methods, social network notifications forexternal updates, social network qualification systems, social networkvirtual private network, social network-driven cooperativecharacterization with non-social network sites, social networkingarchitecture in which profile data hosting is provided by the profileowner, social networking via communications over interactive devices,social notification for a set-top box, storing data related to socialpublishers and associating the data with electronic brand data,suggesting contacts for social networks, tagging digital media,targeting messages to users in a social network, targeting online adsusing social neighborhoods of a social network, targeting third partycontent to users based on social networks, tie strength prediction andsocial media filtration, tracking significant topics of discourse inforums, travel related commercial interactions, use with and integrationinto a video game, user pivot navigation of shared social media, usingsocial information for authenticating a user session, using socialnetworks while respecting access control lists, vehicle based socialnetworking, visual tags for search results generated from social networkinformation, visualization application for mining of social networks,visualizing communications within a social setting, web-based socialnetworking database, weighting social network relationships based oncommunications history, youth based social networking. 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The present invention also provides alternative affiliated promotion oradvertising functions, components, and systems, including, but notlimited to: one or more of (a) advertising content management system andmethod; (b) advertising method and product; (c) affiliate distributionof advertisements with compensation for attention; (d) affiliate systemand affiliate device; (e) affiliate system on social networking orsocial networking communities; (f) affiliated advertising widget; (g)apparatus and method for internet advertising compensation; (h)apparatus, method and article to evaluate affiliate performance; (i)arranging delivery of advertisements over a network such as theinternet; (j) assured comprehension advertising system; (k) bond issueinformation management and distribution system; (l) buying and sellingspots for advertisements in mass-market media; (m) centralizedaffiliated marketplaces systems and methods; (n) computerized networkingdevice with embedded advanced content and web traffic monetizationfunctionality, (o) context-based transactions using broadcastadvertising; (p) customer loyalty and advertising; (q) customizing anadvertisement; (r) delivery, targeting, and measuring advertising overnetworks; (s) electronic publication advertising system; (t) email-basedadvertising system; (u) evaluating content based advertising andaffiliate advertising; (v) interne business co-op with rotating banners;(w) internet-based and tangible referral system; (x) network interactioncorrelation; (y) non-authentication access management system foraffiliated websites linked with advertisement; (z) offering advertisingservices; (a) online platform for web advertisement partnerships oraffiliate program; (b) providing purchasing incentives andadvertisements; (c) providing targeted advertisements based on currentactivity; (d) quality-based online advertisement trading system; (e)revenue generation and sharing for content sharing services; (f)selecting a website affiliate based on maximum potential revenuegeneration; (g) selecting personalized non-competitive electronicadvertising for electronic display; (h) self-funded commissionmanagement system; and (ii) service system and mobile communicationterminal for free using of data communication, e.g., but not limited tothose disclosed in the following US patents and patent applications:US20080208682, US20100324965, US20070244756, US20080120156,US20080021783, US20030220837, U.S. Pat. No. 6,763,334, U.S. Pat. No.7,599,853, US20100069157, US20050065847, U.S. Pat. No. 7,788,130,US20080147499, US20110066479, US20100268582, US20020066688,US20070192369, US20090319372, US20040111319, US20100198670,US20080126515, US20090106098, US20060167820, US20050234775,US20050171838, US20070218876, US20080172329, US20050038702,US20020072965, US20110191176, US20040172331, US20100023392,US20040172332, U.S. Pat. No. 7,930,207, U.S. Pat. No. 7,827,062, U.S.Pat. No. 7,844,488, US20040172324, US20030028433, U.S. Pat. No.5,948,061, US20070214227, US20020087631, US20110270686, US20090307081,US20090240582, US20040153366, US20080306823, US20090198551, U.S. Pat.No. 5,774,534, US20020042914, US20110246391, US20080059575, each ofwhich patents or patent application is entirely incorporated herein byreference.

The present invention also provides one or more of a method, apparatus,or system to provide related and integrated social networking, real timegeospatial mapping, geo-target location or mobile device and receivingcurrent location of user's electronic device and multiple points ofinterest, cloud-type configuration storing and handling user data acrossmultiple applications, generating user behavior data and ad links,promotions (“social/geo/promo”) links on a website for any product, goodor service, including social/geo/promo data sets for user customizedvisual displays showing 3D map presentations with correlated or relatedbroad or alternative categories of social/geo/promo links to bedisplayed with web page content for view by an end user. In oneimplementation, a method is provided. The method includes selecting afirst social/geo/promo link category for a first position of asocial/geo/promo link promotional data set to be displayed on aninteractive 3D geospatial mapping display for promotion or sale ofonline products, goods or services with social networking and companyand local information. One or more second social/geo/promo linkcategories are identified using one or more correlation criteria, whereat least one second social/geo/promo link category has one or morecorrelation criteria associated with the first social/geo/promo linkcategory

Non Limiting Examples of Alternative Implementations of the Presentinvention.

The present invention provides in one aspect combining social behaviortracking, online surveillance and web bot software technologies via amobile device or computer for tracking consumer behavior and data,cookies, embedded advertisements and affiliate advertising, predictingonline consumer behavior by monitoring online activity, onlinecommunications, search inquiries, social networking, social plugins, adlinks, promotions, social applications, entertainment shopping, pennyauctions or online auctions, bidding, bidding behavior, bidding results,advertisements and affiliate advertising, purchasing behavior, buyingpatters and other criteria, consumer address books & contact lists,blogs, chat rooms, friends, acquaintances and strangers, instantmessaging, text chat, interne forum, service providers, travel &hospitality, real estate, educational services, ancillary services (asdefined herein) and delivery system for behavior targeting and filteringof ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobile services, Products,Goods & Services, penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements andaffiliate advertising or services and service providers, businesscenters and affiliates for related company information on a threedimensional geospatial platform using multi-dimensional and scalablegeospatial mapping associated with entities providing and/or members ofthe service and/or social networking communities.

Unlike other shopping sites, when site subscribers using the presentinvention, called Social Shoppers (or “SE SHOPPERS”), visit a website ofthe invention, they are invited to travel virtually just about any wherein the world in search of the best ad links, promotions, online coupons,mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping,penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliateadvertising or services as they shop for the best bargains on theplanet. This one-of-a-kind social networking website that will use GPStechnology to reach people at the point of shopping displaying the exactlocation of daily deals, coupons, products & services from merchants andmajor brands and showcase them in their actual, physical location on theplanet (collectively referred to as “Social Earth Coupons”). Users willbe able to connect online just like in the real world. Users will beable to interact with their friends, play games, search for a greatrestaurant, museum, art gallery and more, upload photos, send instantmessages and video chat with their circles of friends. Users will alsobe able to participate in online auctions and find great bargains for upto 90% off the retail price.

After users install a Google Earth™ plug-in, which has been downloadedmore than one billion times since October 2011, they will be able toselect their favorite cities and virtually travel around the globe insearch of great bargains. Users will be able to choose from a menu ofcoupons categories such as “Purchase Coupons” for Arts & Entertainment,Travel, Giving Back, Eat & Drink, Deal of the Day or “Free Coupons” forHealth & Beauty, Sports, Shopping & Groceries. As Social Shoppers maketheir selections, daily deals, coupons and other products and serviceswill populate the 3D globe based upon their preferences and targetedcity. Members will be able to virtually travel around the selected cityand search for great deals. Click on one of the featured City icons onSocial Earth™ and virtually fly there in an instant. This globalshopping site is going to bring users to the exact point of shopping inan instant.

As Social Shoppers shop the world for ad links, promotions, onlinecoupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainmentshopping, penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements andaffiliate advertising or services as well as view bargains, onlinecoupons and offers from major brands for family fun, sports,restaurants, events and hundreds of top consumer packaged goods brandsfor groceries, apparel, beverages, books & magazines, foods, healthcare, household, office, personal care, pet care, photography and thelike. Social Shoppers will find great ad links, promotions, onlinecoupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainmentshopping, penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements andaffiliate advertising or services from merchants and sellers from theleading travel & hospitality industry, restaurants, toy andentertainment companies and top retailers around the world.

Social Shoppers can select target locations anywhere in the U.S. such asAtlanta, Austin, Dallas, Denver, San Diego, and San Francisco or in anyother cities around the world. Social Shoppers, e.g., can find products,goods or services or advertisements and affiliate advertising around theworld in place such as London, Paris or Rome or they can tour the planetat will, jumping from Hong Kong to Amsterdam to Buenos Aires to checkout the local ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobile services,Products, Goods & Services, as well as entertainment shopping, pennyauctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising orservicing from merchants and sellers from around the world. Because theEarth view comes live from satellite and webcam images, shoppers canzoom in for a closer look or zoom out to gain perspective on thelocation. Such an aspect of the present invention displays, organizesand delivers information across many social layers and social mediasites featuring top-notch content, stunning satellite imagery, aerialphotography and graphic animated color overlays on top of Google Earth™.

The present invention delivers a delightful mash-up of content, Couponsand live social feeds” from Facebook™ and Twitter™ or other popularsocial networks around the world. The present invention utilizes socialnetworking platforms such as, but not limited to, Facebook™ andTwitter™, to allow Social Shoppers to share the latest ad links,promotions, online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services,entertainment services, penny auctions or online auctions,advertisements and affiliate advertising or services with their friendson Social Earth or in these popular social networking giants. Unlikeother sites, the present invention aggregates ad links, promotions,online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services,entertainment shopping, penny auctions or online auctions,advertisements and affiliate advertising or services on its site daily,but they won't last just one day. The present invention can furtherprovide products, goods or services or advertisements and affiliateadvertising can last for days, weeks or even months. Social Shoppers areencouraged to share these ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobileservices, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, pennyauctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising orservices with their friends on Social Earth or in Facebook™ and Twitter™or other social networking avenues. The global sharing capabilities arebuilt into the present inventions technology using sophisticatedtechnology integrating geospatial mapping, layering location-relevantdata and GPS technologies. Social Shoppers are able to find great adlinks, promotions, online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goods &Services, entertainment shopping, penny auctions or online auctions,advertisements and affiliate advertisings or services in their localareas or just about anywhere else in the world with the click of a mouseor mobile device. Capitalizing on the popularity of social networkinggiants Facebook™ and Twitter™ with more than 750 million or more usersworldwide, the present invention provides an online community that tapsinto the power of social networking by integrating “live social feeds”from these social networking giants directly into its website. Bycreating a highly engaged social networking community on Social Earth,Facebook™ and Twitter™ and encouraging users and members to share thelatest promotion, online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goods &Services, entertainment shopping, penny auction or online auctions,advertisement and affiliate advertising or services with their friendson Social Earth, Facebook™ or Twitter,™ the present invention creates“stickiness,” keeping the Social Shoppers on the site for long periodsof time, as well as bringing them back again and again.

The present invention provides long-time customer loyalty, not just aone-off deal. The present invention also provides that a portion of each“Social Earth Coupon” that is sold on the platform will be allocated tomicroloans or microcredit, humanitarian aid or other worldly cause orsustainable gifts. In addition, users will be able to make charitabledonations through the Shopping Cart and purchase online coupons,Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, penny auction oronline auction, advertisements and affiliated advertising or servicesthat support humanitarian aid or sustainable gifts to help those in needaround the world. The community aspect of the present invention is thedriver behind building awareness of the website and its featured adlinks, promotions, online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goods &Services, entertainment shopping, penny auctions or online auctions,advertisements and affiliate advertising or services. Existing andpotential customers provide advertising by spreading the word to theirfriends about the great ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobileservices, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, pennyauctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising orservices they've found on a shopping site of the present invention. Addto that the power of collective buying with the power of socialnetworking and it's easy to see how the community provided by thepresent invention can leverage group size in exchange for largerdiscounts. The present invention delivers Social Earth ad links,promotions, online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services,entertainment shopping, penny auctions or online auctions,advertisements and affiliate advertising or services from merchants andsellers from around the world to its Social Shoppers via its unique liveview of the Earth on a geospatial platform that includes links to placesand events, data on the landscape, interactive 360 panoramas, andfly-through shopping tours with stunning 3D imagery. The use ofgeospatial mapping for associating information to specific places canincluded, but it not limited to, one or more of: Live links to placesand events; Data on the landscape; Zoom to birds-eye and human scaleviews; 3D custom audio/visual content; Interactive 360 panoramas;Fly-through tours with content, narration, music; Stunning imagery andvideos; 3D buildings and landscaping, e-commerce and mobile bankingtools and hooks; Advertising on the landscape; Advanced search forprivate and public information; Social networking integration, socialplugins, social applications; Self-posting for uploading user generatedcontent; Custom tools, social & mobile apps and widgets; and the like.The present invention further provides mobile device access from anydevice to provide Social Earth ad links, promotions, online coupons,mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping,penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliateadvertising or services from merchants and sellers from around the worldto Social Shoppers based upon their precise location and GPS technology.This provides the ability to create an infrastructure and globalplatform that provides users and members and businesses of all types andsizes with access to broad markets and connect buyers and sellers and toreach people at the point of shopping—a benefit both to shoppers andmerchants.

Social Layers. Social Shoppers using or part of the present inventionvirtually travel just about any where in the world in search of shoppingproducts or services, as well as bargains. The present inventionstechnology drives content, ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobileservices, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, pennyauctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising orservices into a “virtual Earth” based upon its precise location and GPStechnology. Users will be able to enjoy the shopping scene on the planetEarth and view Social Earth ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobileservices, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping pennyauctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising orservices from merchants and sellers from around the world by geo-targetlocation using GPS technologies. This website of the inventionaggregates Social Earth ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobileservices, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, pennyauctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising orservices from merchants and sellers from around the world (in differentlanguages) and showcase them in their actual, physical location on thevirtual Earth. Because the virtual Earth is “interactive,” one can zoomin for a more detailed view or zoom out to gain perspective on wherethey are in the world. Social Earth ad links, promotions, onlinecoupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainmentshopping, penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements andaffiliate advertising or services can last for days, weeks or evenmonths. What makes the present inventions website different from othergroup buying websites is that websites of the present invention allowSocial Shoppers to search for ad links, promotions, online coupons,mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping,penny auctions or online auctions, as well as advertisements andaffiliate advertising or services from merchants and sellers from aroundthe world on a virtual Earth. Users will be able to customize theirbuying preferences, engage in social networking activities, supportworthwhile causes and much more. Websites of the present invention canallow Social Shoppers to select from a menu of coupons based upon theironline activities, location, online communications, search inquiries,social networking, social plugins, ad links, promotions, socialapplications, entertainment shopping, penny auctions or online auctions,advertisements and affiliate advertising or services, purchasing,behavior, buying patterns and other criteria, which is integrated intothe virtual Earth along with other layer location-relevant data asSocial Shoppers shop online and interact with their friends in otherpopular social networks. Advertisers and merchants will be able totarget Social Shoppers based on geo-target location.

The present invention provides layer applications, which are known as“social layers.” These social layers allow Social Shoppers to customizetheir personal experience on SOCIAL EARTH as they search for SocialEarth ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobile services, Products,Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, penny auctions or onlineauctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising or services frommerchants and sellers in their local area or just about anywhere else inthe world based upon their precise location, GPS, buying preferences,interests or travels take them. Social Shoppers select from a menu of“Purchase” coupon categories such as. (Arts & Entertainment, Travel,Giving Back, Eat & Drink, Deal of the Day) and “Free” coupon categoriessuch as: (Health & Beauty, Sports, Shopping, Groceries). The presentinvention provides methods and systems that drive traffic to its websiteby targeting Social Earth Products, Goods & Services and connectingbuyers and sellers from around the world on a global platform, basedupon a user's preference, which are displayed on a unique Live View ofplanet Earth. Once a Social Shopper selects one or more couponcategories, advertisements for Social Earth ad links, promotions, onlinecoupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainmentshopping, penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements andaffiliate advertising or services from merchants and sellers from aroundthe world will populate the virtual Earth. Social Shoppers are able todouble click on Social Earth ad links, promotions, online coupons,mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping,penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliateadvertising or services and virtually fly directly to its location onEarth. Social Shoppers can also click on one of the featured cities andtake a tour of London, San Francisco or Denver and zoom down to streetlevel to take a closer look. Social Shoppers enjoy the experience ofvirtually traveling around the world, zooming in and out to street levelin search for great ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobileservices, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, pennyauctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising orservices and sharing them with their friends on Social Earth or in thesepopular social networks.

In connection with a one-of-a-kind geospatial website aggregates SocialEarth ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobile services, Products,Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, penny auctions or onlineauctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising or services frommerchants and sellers from around the world and showcases them in theiractual, physical location on the websites unique live view of Earth. AsSocial Shoppers shop the world for bargains, they can view Social Earthpromotions, online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services,entertainment shopping, penny auctions or online auctions,advertisements and affiliate advertising or services from merchants andsellers of major brands for such items as family fun, sports,restaurants, events and hundreds of top consumer packaged goods brandsfor groceries, apparel, beverages, books & magazines, foods, healthcare, household, office, personal care, pet care, photography and otherembodiments.

Social Shoppers can find great ad links, promotions, online coupons,mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping,penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliateadvertising or services from merchants and sellers from the leadingtravel & hospitality industry, restaurants, toy and entertainmentcompanies and top retailers around the world. Social Shoppers can use “amobile device payment method and system for effectuating an onlinepayment through a computer or a mobile device equipped carrier or amobile device equipped bank using a mobile users device in connectionwith an e-commerce and mobile banking transactions on the hostgeospatial website or mobile device (e.g., mobile telephone, PDA, laptopcomputer, etc.); wherein users and members create and maintain arich-media application via a geospatial mapping platform via theInternet comprising: mobile banking and electronic payments. Thedelivery system for a host geospatial website (access via a mobiledevice or computer) will provide for a multidimensional representationof information and scalable version of web content for the delivery ofSocial Earth ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobile services,Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, penny auctions oronline auctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising or servicesfrom merchants and sellers from around the world on a three dimensionalgeospatial platform using geospatial mapping technology.

A host geospatial website will include realistic virtual landscape usingsatellite and aerial photography that will include many content layersof web based information, e-commerce and mobile banking links, socialnetworking, social networking communities, social networking activities,social plugins, ad links, promotions, social applications, onlinedating, entertainment shopping, penny auctions or online auctions andadvertisements and affiliate advertising or services from merchants andsellers from around the world for a richer user experience. A hostgeospatial website shall store images, web-based content, social dataand share “live social feeds” from social networking giants Facebook™and Twitter™ and other communications in real-time, which can alsoinclude tracking and predicting of online communications via a mobiledevice or computer with respect to third party applications and outsidesocial networks such as e.g. Facebook™, Twitter™, Skype™ and othersocial networks around the world. Connecting Social Earth products,goods or services from merchants around the world with users and membersknown as “Social Shoppers” in real-time on a geographical area acrossmultiple social layers that are displayed as graphic animated coloroverlays on a three dimensional geospatial platform using geospatialmapping technology. More specifically, it relates to a method for usersand members known as “Social Shoppers” to effectuate banking andelectronic payments; accessing a user account, engaging in mobile socialactivities and viewing available options via a three dimensionalgeospatial mapping platform using geospatial mapping technology.”

The present invention further provides the use of various marketing andcustomer generation methods, including, but not limited to, social mediaplatforms to generate traffic to the websites and access points for thepresent invention, e.g., but not limited to, a SOCIAL EARTH website, inorder to provide a large subscriber base of Social Shoppers; which caninclude, but is not limited to, one or more of the following: VirtualPenny Auctions or Online Auctions—Social Shoppers can view, bid andpurchase items from penny auctions or online auction from around theworld on Social Earth. Virtual Coupons—Social Shoppers can view SocialEarth ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobile services, Products,Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, penny auctions or onlineauctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising or services bygeo-target location; Video Coupons—Social Earth “video” ad links,promotions, online coupons, Products, Goods & Services, entertainmentshopping, penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements andaffiliate advertising or services from merchants and sellers from aroundthe world that are displayed on one or more pages, links, on thewebsite; Email Marketing—featured Social Earth ad links, promotions,online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services,entertainment shopping, penny auctions or online auctions,advertisements and affiliate advertising or services will be emailed tousers and contain a brief headline deal(s) with a full description ofupcoming events; Website—Visitors are prompted to register as a SocialShopper when they first visit website and thereafter use the website asa portal for featured Social Earth ad links, promotions, online coupons,mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment services,penny auctions, or online auctions, advertisements and affiliateadvertising or services from merchants and sellers from their local areaor just about any where in the world; Mobile Applications—Consumers canaccess Social Earth ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobileservices, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, pennyauction or online auctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising orservices via a smartphone or similar device, which is compatible withGoogle Earth™ and similar geospatial mapping technologies, and smartphones; Google Ad Words™—Google Ad Words™ or similar advertising isprovided to maximize search results for Social Earth Coupons; Pay PerAd—the invention can provide a PPC Ad link on other “high traffic”websites to drive traffic to websites of the invention; In-streamAdvertising—In-stream advertising is also provides to use social mediaplatforms such as “live social feeds” from Facebook™ and Twitter™ tospread the word about Social Earth Coupons; User Generated Traffic theinvention can provide rewards to Social Shoppers for sharing andspreading the word about products, goods & services that are offered.e.g., if a certain number of people sign up for Social Earth Coupon,then the deal becomes available to all included; Share Coupons withFriends—the present invention provides this way to make it easy forusers and members to share “Social Earth Coupons with friends on socialnetworking and similar sites, e.g., but not limited to, Twitter™,Facebook™, StumbleUpon™, Delicious™, Friendfeed™, or Digg™; Refer AFriend—the invention can provide a Referral Widget and encourage SocialShoppers to refer their friends and receive $10 worth of loyaltycredits; Loyalty Card Program—the invention can provide Loyalty CardPrograms that reward Social Shoppers each time they purchase a SocialEarth Coupon; Social Network Feeds—the invention provides where SocialShoppers can suggest a business to others in the Social Shoppercommunity, track their friends and share “live social feeds” fromFacebook™ and Twitter™;

SOCIAL EARTH For Your Business—the present invention can provides forhelp for businesses to reach new customers with the inventions Live ViewEarth business platform, where are provided businesses featured in asponsor ads, such as, but not limited to, Premium Sponsor Ads; GiftCards—Social Shoppers and businesses can purchase Gift Cards forfriends, family and customers; Foursquare™—the invention can provide adlinks, promotions via Foursquare so consumers can act and immediatelyshare the information with their friends; Open Source Technologies—theinvention provides that Social Shoppers can connect with millions ofSocial Shoppers in popular social networks such as Facebook™ andTwitter™ using open source technologies; Data Mining—the inventionprovides for gathering social data for online, mobile advertisers andsocial brands that are interested in a target market of a particularsegment based upon their precise location or other criteria; ImageSharing Sites—the invention provides for Social Shoppers to uploadimages on image sharing sites such as Flickr™ and Picasaweb™; SocialBookmarking: the invention provides for the use of social bookmarkingwith sites like Digg™, Delicious™, StumbleUpon™, etc.; Search EngineOptimization—Key words can be used in the present invention to optimizevisibility to top search engines such as: Google™, Yahoo™, Bing™, Ask™and AOL Search™. Other search engines such as: Collecta™, Topsy™,48ers™, Leapfish™, Scoopler™ and Sency™ are powerful tools that willshow live streams of microblog updates from Twitter™, Jaiku™ andIdentica™, photos from Flickr™, TwitPic™ and yFrog™ and videos fromYouTube™ and Ustream™; YouTube™: the present invention can provideperiodic YouTube videos outlining how to use and maximize userpurchasing power using the present invention, e.g., SOCIAL EARTH, aswell as soliciting and providing video testimonials from Social Shopperson an ongoing basis, e.g., incentivizing “four star” videos with aspecial “Best Expert User” badge to be featured on their profile page;Video Viral Marketing can also be used in the present invention; as wellas Blogging, and using article servers (such as ezinearticles.com,goarticles.com, selfgrowth.com, isnare.com); Twitter™ Marketing,including, e.g., but not limited to, discounts or other special adlinks, promotions, online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goods &Services, entertainment shopping, penny auctions or online auctions,advertisements and affiliate advertising or services with their friendson Social Earth and Twitter™; Affiliates—the invention can furtherprovide API widgets or geo-targeted social links that can be downloadedby affiliates. Social Shoppers can get paid X percent (X %) of sales ofSocial Earth Coupons on their websites; Independent CouponDistributors—the invention can provide network(s) of independent coupondistributors that own Valupak™ or other franchises (and other directmail coupon companies) to include “Social Earth Coupons” that can bedistributed to local businesses.

Referring now to the drawings wherein like reference numerals are usedto identify identical components in the various views, FIG. 1 shows anexample of a combined Products, Goods or Services with /GeospatialMapping/Company-Local Information/Social Networking/Communities(“PGS-GM-CL/I-SN”) system 10 in accordance with an exemplary embodimentcombined online Product or Service in combination with geospatialmapping/company/Local Information/and/or social networking distributionsystem 10 includes a main server system 12 and a client system 14 thatis remote from main server system 12, connected together by adistributed computer network, such as the Internet 16 (network, ormobile device access system). A user desiring to obtain one and/or moreof online Products, Goods or Services in combination with geospatialmapping/company/Local Information/and/or social networking uses clientsystem 14 to interact with main server system 12 to obtain onlineProducts, Goods or Services. An electronic coupon can be but is notlimited to any advertisement that is electronic (e.g., electronicadvertisement on website, electronic advertisement sent to clientdevice, a hyper link based on a search result from a search engineand/or any other push/pull techniques).

Main server system 12 is configured to be connected to, and/or otherwisereceive, ad links, promotions, online coupons, social activity,location, Product, Good and/or services information from the issuer ofsuch coupons (i.e., the coupons sponsor) and/or as provided by thewebsite and/or other electronically provided information, e.g., by PDA,cell phone, portable electronic tablet, etc., including mobile bankingor e-commerce system. Although not shown, this function can be performedby a direct electronic connection with a sponsor system, and/or caninvolve loading data from a physically transportable data storage medium(e.g., diskette, tape, CD-ROM, USB drive, etc.). The coupon sponsor may,and in most cases will, issue in connection with the coupon anassociated set of instructions that define how the coupon is to bedistributed. For example, such instructions can include restrictions asto the number of coupons that any one user can print out for redemption,the state and/or zip code associated with a user for such user to haveaccess to the coupon, the expiration date, the item and discount amount,etc. Main server system 12 is further configured to be connected to,and/or otherwise receive, advertising information from an advertisingsponsor, or purchasing system, e.g., Amazon, or company purchase websiteor mobile application, or through mobile banking system. Although notshown, this function can be performed by direct electronic connectionwith the ad sponsors system, and/or can involve loading data from aphysically transportable data storage medium (i.e., diskette, tape,CD-ROM, etc.). The advertising impressions are displayed on clientsystem 14, as described in greater detail below.

Main server system 12 can include a website server 18, a front-endserver 20, a handler 22, a database server 24, and an FTP server 26.Website server 18 is configured to provide “web pages”, mobile app,e-commerce or electronic or mobile banking, to consumers (includingpossible users and members of electronic coupon distribution system 10)with Internet access. Internet 16, more particularly, the World Wide Webportion thereof, “WWW”, is an interconnected computer network that isgenerally distributed throughout the world on discrete interconnectedcomputer nodes having software interfaces generally referred to as “webpages,” which further includes geospatial mapping, social networking,company and local information, and/or any other useful data. Access toInternet 16 can be made by various methods; typically, however, anon-institutional user obtains access from one of a plurality ofInternet Service Providers (ISPs), which in turn obtain authorizedaccess to Internet 16. Navigation on the WWW portion of Internet 16involves knowledge of a directory structure of various nodes of theInternet (i.e., an “address” to each given resource on Internet 16).Such an address is generally referred to as a Uniform Resource Locator(URL), which typically starts with a protocol name followed by a domainname, for example: http://www.valuepass.com. Website server 18 isconfigured to provide, among other things, an interface for effecting adownload of client software that a consumer can download and execute toestablish a client system 14 on his and/or her computer system. In thisway the consumer can become an authorized user (“user”) of electroniccoupon distribution system 10. In particular, website server 18 canrefer an Internet consumer to FTP server 26 for the client installationfile.

Front-end server 20 provides multiple interface and allocation/directionfeatures for electronic coupon distribution system 10. Front-end server20 is the entity that is initially contacted by client system 14 at thestart of each new session of combined Products, Goods or Services with/Geospatial Mapping/Company-Local Information/SocialNetworking/Communities (“PGS-GM-CL/I-SN”) distribution system 10, and/orwhen automatic coupon updates occur. Handler 22 is configured tointerface with database server 24. After a new session is established bya user, all subsequent requests by client system 14 can be directed toand are “handled” by handler 22. As a result, handler 22 can thereafterissue a request and/or a command to database server 24, and/or directlyrespond to client system (if configured to do so). Database server 24can comprise a plurality of physical, individual general purpose digitalcomputers configured as database servers, which can be furtherconfigured in a cluster arrangement. Database server 24, in oneembodiment, can be configured to operate using SQL server software, suchas, but not limited to, Microsoft SQL Server Version 7, commerciallyavailable from, for example, Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, Wash.,U.S.A.

FTP server 26 can be configured to operate in cooperation with websiteserver 18 to provide, for example, installation and/or setup programs.The installation program(s) are downloaded to a general-purpose computer(e.g., PC and/or a MAC) for installation of the client software inaccordance with the present disclosure.

Client system 14 includes client application software 28, DeviceID data30 (ID) data 30, user preference data 32, user history data 34,PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information data 36, and advertising data 38. Inaddition, client system 14 can comprise a general purpose computingapparatus configured to operate in accordance with an operating systemhaving a graphical user interface, such as, for example, Windows95/98/NT 4.0/2000/Vista/7, and Apple Computer, Inc. MAC OS OperatingSystem for Macintosh platforms. Client system 14 can further includestandard peripherals such as a display device 40, a keyboard 42, apointing device, such as a mouse 44, and an output device, such as aprinter 46, for producing a “hard copy” of PGS-GM-CL/I-SN 48. DeviceIDdata 30 can be stored on main server system 12, according to anexemplary embodiment. In exemplary embodiments, one, a few, a pluralityand/or all DeviceID data 30 can be stored on main server system 12.

Client application software 28 comprises software compatible with andexecuting on client system 14 configured to implement the presentdisclosure as described herein. Client application software 28 performsvarious functions including, but not limited to, collecting userinformation, including preferences, communicating with main serversystem 12 via Internet 16, and providing an interface for the user forbrowsing through, and selecting, PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information forprintout. DeviceID data 30 can comprise a multi-digit number that isassigned by main server system 12, more particularly, database server24, when a user registers with PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information distributionsystem 10. DeviceID data 30 can have a format, such as XXXXXXXX, where Xis a digit between 0-9. DeviceID data 30, however, does not specificallyidentify the user personally, but rather, more accurately associates aphysical machine defining client system 14 with user profile informationobtained during registration. DeviceID data 30 is stored on clientsystem 14, main server system 12, and/or both as a part of a User Infoobject. If the DeviceID data 30 is stored on client system 14, thenDeviceID data 30 is provided to main server system 12 when makingrequests, for example, for new PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information data. If aclient system 14 operates multiple independent operating systems (e.g.,a Mac operating system (a product of Apple Computer, Inc.) and a Windowsoperating system (a product of Microsoft Corp.)), then there can be aseparate DeviceID data 30 for each operating system assigned to thatclient system 14. Main server system 12 can correlate the providedDeviceID data 30 with user information stored in a profile database. Theuser information can then be used in identifying PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation suitable for the user. In this embodiment, however, the useris not personally identified nor is it even possible (e.g., through the“hacking” of main server system 12) to identify the user personally, assuch information is not even collected from the user. Accordingly, theapproach described herein maintains privacy of the user ofPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information distribution system 10.

The User Info object further includes user information collected fromthe user of client system 14 indicative of one and/or more demographiccharacteristics of the user. In this embodiment, the user information isinsufficient to specifically identify the user. In a constructedembodiment, such information comprises a postal zip code associated withthe user, and a state in which the user resides. Client applicationsoftware 28 allows the user to update this information after initialregistration. In addition, the User Info object includes the mode inwhich the Internet is accessed, for example, through use of a modem(e.g., dial-up), through use of a Local Area Network (LAN), and/or useof a proxy server. The User Info object can further include the versionnumber of the client application software 28.

User preference data 32 comprises two main groups. The first group ofinformation contained in user preference data 32 includes informationdefining how often the main server system 12 is checked for newPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information. In a constructed embodiment, the optionsinclude one hour, two hours, four hours (the default), twice a day, andonce a day. The first group of information contained in user preferencedata 32 can also include a miscellaneous item of information indicatingwhether the user prefers that certain PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information beautomatically printed (this can be selected and/or deselected by theuser). The second main group of information included in user preferencedata 32 includes a comprehensive listing of main categories ofPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information selected by the user that the user wishes toreceive. While the particular main PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information categorydescriptions can be changed on main server system 12 and downloaded toclient system 14 at any time, exemplary categories include “Apparel”,“Athletics”, “Automotive”, and “Internet Electronics”, among others. Auser can deselect a category, in which case PGS-GM-CL/I-SN informationpertaining to that category will not be sent from main server system 12to client system 14.

User history data 34 comprises data corresponding to events occurring atthe remote client system 14, as well as other items pertaining to theoperation of client system 14. All these items are stored in a userhistory file. For example, when a user is browsing through availablePGS-GM-CL/I-SN information each PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information that isselected for viewing is noted in the user history file. Likewise, whenPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information is selected for printing, that action is alsorecorded in the user history file. Other examples include whenPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information is actually printed, and when an advertisingimpression (described in further detail below) is displayed on displaydevice 40. The information contained in the user history data 34 isencrypted by client application software 28 in accordance with a clientsystem encryption strategy to protect the integrity of the datacontained therein. The contents of the user history data 34 aredescribed and illustrated in greater detail in connection with FIG. 17.

PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information data 36 includes information corresponding tothe PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information available (e.g., for browsing) on clientsystem 14. Each PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information, such as PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation 48, includes a plurality of items of information associatedtherewith.

Therefore, an exemplary, non-limiting, structure is defined for eachPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information having the items of information set forth inTable 1 below.

TABLE 1 PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information Data Structure 1. PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation Sponsor Name 2. Product and/or Service Description 3.Savings and/or Discount Amount 4. The Number of PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation Available for Printout 5. The Number of PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation Printed Out Thus Far 6. Expiration Date 7. OptionalText/Image(s) 8. PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information Identification Number

In addition, when PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information 48 is actually printed out,additional information can be printed out on the “hard copy” of thePGS-GM-CL/I-SN information. These additional items can include theDeviceID data 30, portions of the demographic data such as the postalzip code, one and/or more items of the user information contained inuser preference data 32, the date and time, and optionally variousInternet URLs. Coupon sponsors have found some of the informationappearing on printed PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information 48 desirable. That is,when the user redeems PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information 48, for example, at aretail store, information appearing on PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information 48(which is eventually returned by the retailer to the PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation issuer and/or sponsor) is available to the PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation sponsor. This information can thereafter be used inanalyzing and assessing the efficacy of various advertising/promotionalstrategies. PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information data 36 can be stored on a harddrive and/or the like associated with client system 14, and ispreferably stored in an encrypted form. In particular, and in accordancewith the present disclosure, PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information data 36corresponding to PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information is encrypted by main serversystem 12 in accordance with a server system encryption strategy. \

The encrypted PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information data is then transmitted toclient system 14. Client system 14 further encrypts the once-encryptedPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information data in accordance with a client systemencryption strategy to thereby generate doubly encrypted PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation data. The doubly encrypted PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information data36 can then be stored on the client system 14. The foregoing encryptionsteps substantially minimize the occurrence of fraud in the distributionof PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information compared to known systems. A user, forexample, can therefore not easily defeat the PGS-GM-CL/I-SN informationcounting scheme that limits the number of printouts by, for example,exploring the client systems hard drive, identifying PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation data, and thereafter producing printed copies of thePGS-GM-CL/I-SN information. Use of the environment established by clientapplication software 28 is therefore practically the only means for theuser to obtain usable PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information 48. Advertising data 38comprises a plurality of advertising impressions wherein each impressioncan include a predetermined combination of text and images. Advertisingdata 38 is also stored on client system 14 in an encrypted form. Displaydevice 40, keyboard 42, mouse 44, and printer 46 can comprise anapparatus known to those of ordinary skill in the art.

FIG. 2 shows, in greater detail, database server 24 of main serversystem 12. As described above, database server 24 can comprise aplurality of physical database servers arranged in a cluster. Furtherphysical machines can be added to provide for load balancing (i.e.,scalability, and the ability to quickly add additional hardware as loadand responsiveness criteria require). Database server 24 can includePGS-GM-CL/I-SN information database 50, an advertising database 52, amaster category list master category list database 54, a plugin database56, a brand logo database 58, and a user transaction history database60.

PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information database 50 includes PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation data similar to that described in connection withPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information data 36, but is more in the nature of amaster PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information database including the entire universeand/or a larger set of PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information available onPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information distribution system 10. Advertising database52 includes a plurality of ad impressions, which can be a combination oftext and/or images. Again, advertising database 52 is in the nature of amaster advertising database including all of the advertising impressionsincluded in main server system 12.

Master category list database 54 includes the main PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation category names presently established on PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation distribution system 10. In addition, displaycharacteristics, such as the color of a main PGS-GM-CL/I-SN informationcategory button (to be described in connection with FIG. 3A) can also bestored in database 54.

Plugin database 56 includes information as to available plugins for usein connection with client application software 28 of client system 14.Plugin database 56 includes a plurality of plugins. The particularplugins that are selected for use in connection with client applicationsoftware 28 depends on what added functionality has been configured inclient system 14. For example, plugins can be configured to provideZodiac information, recipe information, and stock quote information tothe user. Additionally, a plugin can be configured to provide a newPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information style for the user. In this way, clientsystem 14 can be updated remotely with new functionality.

Brand logo database 58 includes information as to how the user interfaceof client system 14 is “branded.” The default “branding” of the userinterface involves the display of a company logo of the assignee of thepresent disclosure. Also, a corresponding Internet URL for “clickthrough” purposes is associated with the brand image. However, inalternate embodiments, other companies can arrange (e.g., through areferral of potential new users and members of PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation distribution system 10) to have the user interface of clientapplication software 28 “branded” with the referring company's logo (andInternet URL for “click through”).

User transaction history database 60 includes information contained inuser history data 34 uploaded from client system 14. User transactionhistory database 60 therefore contains information corresponding toactions and/or events taken by and/or involving the user of clientsystem 14. User transaction history database 60 therefore includes arecord for each PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information that has been downloadedand/or otherwise provided to client system 14. As each PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation is displayed, and/or printed by the user, for example, thecorresponding record in user transaction history database 60 is updated.

Referring now to FIGS. 3A and 3B, FIG. 3A shows a Graphical UserInterface (GUI) 62 displayed on display device 40 in connection with theexecution of client application software 28. User interface 62 includesa plurality of main PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information category “buttons” 64each having a respective status indicator 66 associated therewith. Userinterface 62 also includes PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information subcategory list68, PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information list 70, an advertising pane 72, a logopane 74, a main PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information display area 76, an“Add-To-Print-Cart” button 78, a “Print Now” button 80, a “More Info”button 82, a “Delete” button 84, a “Preferences” button 86, a “Ad linksor Promotions” button 88, a “Refresh” button 90, a printout statusdisplay area 92, and a general message display area 94.

Main PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information category buttons 64 allow the user ofclient system 14 to select the general category of PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation that the user is interested in viewing. For example, theuser who is interested in browsing through media and entertainmentPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information, would select the main category button 64designated “Media and Entertainment” using a pointing device such asmouse 44 (e.g., via “clicking” on the button). Status indicator 66associated with each main PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information category button 64indicates whether there are PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information under that maincategory that have not yet been displayed in PGS-GM-CL/I-SN informationdisplay area 76. As shown in FIG. 3A, when a status indicator 66 is“checked” (i.e., active), as indicated generally at 66.sub.A for themain PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information category button labeled “Added Extras”,such indication informs the user that PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information areavailable under that main PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information category that havenot yet been displayed.

Alternatively, when there are no undisplayed PGS-GM-CL/I-SN informationunder a main category, the “checked” status indicator 66 becomesinactive and is removed, as shown by a dashed line box designated66.sub.I where a status indicator would otherwise be displayed had itbeen “active.”

When one of the plurality of main PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information categorybuttons 64 is selected, a corresponding subcategory list is displayed inPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information subcategory list 68. A user can then browsethrough the items contained in PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information subcategorylist 68 and make a selection. When one of the items contained inPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information subcategory list 68 is selected by the user(e.g., via “clicking”), the corresponding individual PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation and/or informational messages are displayed inPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information list 70. The user can then select an itemfrom PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information list 70, which will then be displayed inPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information display area 76. Through the foregoinginterface, users and members of PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information distributionsystem 10 can quickly and easily navigate from broad main PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation categories, to individual PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information, forprintout and later redemption. If the user desires to print out aparticular PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information, the user can select the printcart button 78 to add the selected PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information to a printcart and/or queue for subsequent printout on printer 46. Alternatively,the user can print the selected PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information immediatelyby selecting the “Print Now” button 80.

Advertising pane 72 is configured to display an advertising impression.In one embodiment, the advertising impression is selected from aplurality of advertising impressions as a function of a selectedPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information subcategory. For example, a vendor ofelectronic equipment can arrange to have an ad impression for thatvendors company displayed in advertising pane 72 when the user selects aparticular PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information subcategory from list 68 when the“Internet Electronics” category button 64 is selected. As a furtherfeature, the advertiser can provide an Internet URL (e.g., to its homepage) and have it associated with the ad impression. Client applicationsoftware 28 is configured such that when a user selects (e.g., “clicks”)advertising pane 72, an Internet browser program associated with clientsystem 14 is launched and is directed to the URL as specified by theadvertiser. This is a so-called “click through” occurrence, which isrecorded in the user history file. Logo pane 74 provides a display areathrough which the user interface 62 of PGS-GM-CL/I-SN informationdistribution system 10 can be “branded.” As with advertising pane 72, anInternet URL can be associated with the brand logo displayed in logopane 74. Client application software 28 is configured such that when theuser selects (e.g. “clicks”) logo pane 74, an Internet browser programassociated with client system 14 is launched and is directed to thespecified URL.

The “Print Now” button 80 is configured under client applicationsoftware 28 such that when selected, the PGS-GM-CL/I-SN informationcurrently being viewed is printed out on printer 46. If there are oneand/or more other PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information currently in the printqueue, as a result of prior selection of the print cart button 78 forpreviously displayed PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information, then selection of the“Print Now” button 80 by the user will operate to print all suchselected PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information 48 on printer 46. The “More Info”button 82 is configured under client application software 28 to launchan Internet browser program associated with client system 14 whenselected, and, further, to direct the browser to a specified URL. Inaccordance with a secure e-couponing embodiment of the presentdisclosure, predetermined ones of the PGS-GM-CL/I-SN informationdisplayed in PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information display area 76 can be redeemedby the user electronically (as opposed to printing out the displayedPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information and physically tendering the same to theretailer). Generally, a portion of the PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information beingdisplayed in PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information display area 76 will tell theuser to click on the “More Info” button 82 to instantly redeem thePGS-GM-CL/I-SN information.

Client application software 28 is configured to invoke, in response tothe “click”, the specified but completely hidden and inaccessible URL(including the appended promotional code) using an Internet browserprogram. Client application software 28 disables access to the invokedURL/code. For example, moving the mouse arrow over the PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation/ad does not cause the URL to be displayed, nor is“right-button clicking” operative to allow capture of the URL.Accordingly, the specified URL (and code) is neither displayed noravailable, and cannot be discovered by, for example, “right-clicking” onPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information display area 76, like a web-basede-PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information distribution systems. The browser takes theuser to the website corresponding the specified URL, where the appendedpromotional code is processed, and the user provided an opportunity toredeem the same. The present disclosure therefore provides securePGS-GM-CL/I-SN information distribution. In another embodiment, thespecified URL that is invoked when the “More Info” button 82 is“clicked” comprises the URL associated with an advertiser's website(i.e., the advertiser associated with an ad impression displayed inadvertising pane 72). The “Delete” button 84 is configured under clientapplication software 28 to delete the currently viewed PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation when selected by the user.

The “Preferences” button 86 is configured under client applicationsoftware 28 to allow the user to set and/or modify the informationcontained in the user preference data 32, when selected by the user. Forexample, the refresh interval referred to above can be updated by theuser to extend and/or foreshorten the PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information updateinterval. The “Ad links or Promotions” button 88 is configured underclient application software 28 to prompt the user to enter a promotioncode to obtain a special promotion PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information, whenselected by the user. For example, a third-party website, and/or thelike, can advise the user of a promotional code, with instruction toestablish client system 14 (if they are not already a registered user),and then to enter the promotion code as described above, to obtain thepromotional PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information.

The “Refresh” button 90 is configured under client application software28 to transmit an update request from client system 14 to main serversystem 12, when selected by the user. This action, in-effect, requeststhat any new PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information waiting for the user on mainserver system 12 at that point in time be downloaded to client system14. Additionally, any data in the user history file is uploaded.Printout status display area 92 is provided for displaying messagespertaining to the status of the print cart (e.g., “Items to Print: 2”).Message display area 94 is provided for displaying various messages tothe user of client system 14.

Referring now to FIG. 3B, the graphical user interface associated withthe operating system of client system 14 can include a taskbar 100. Inaccordance with the present disclosure, taskbar icon 102 is provided.Client application software 28 is configured to display taskbar icon 102to the user in a first display state when no new PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation and/or messages are available to the user. Taskbar icon 102in the first display state can assume a static display. In constructedembodiment, taskbar icon 102 includes a generally black-colored “%”symbol on a yellow-colored background, all enclosed by a dashed-linebox.

Client application software 28 is further configured to display taskbaricon 102 in a second display state different from the first displaystate when new PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information and/or messages are availablefor the user. In a constructed embodiment, the second display stateassociated with taskbar icon 102 comprises a quasi-flashing displaystate wherein (i) the color of the “%” symbol is indexed and/or rotatedthrough a plurality of different colors, and (ii) the dashed-lineenclosure box is manipulated to give the sense of movement, particularlyrotation, around the perimeter of taskbar icon 102.

Referring now to FIG. 4, a brief description of the operation ofPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information distribution system 10, particularly the maininteractions between client system 14 and main server system 12, willnow be set forth. Each time a new session is commenced, the basic stepsset forth in FIG. 4 are performed.

In step 104, client system 14, by way of execution of client applicationsoftware 28, is initialized. In step 106, client application software 28determines whether there is an identified user device for client system14, and/or whether the present user is a “new” user device. Clientapplication software 28 can make this determination based on theexistence and/or absence of particular files on client system 14 (e.g.,a file containing a DeviceID data 30) indicative of whether and/or notthis is a “new” user device. If “NO”, then the method branches to step112. Otherwise, if the answer to step 106 is “YES”, then the methodbranches to step 107.

In step 107, client application software 28 obtains user informationfrom the user. In particular, client application software 28 isconfigured to collect user information from a user of client system 14indicative of one and/or more demographic characteristics of the userwithout obtaining information sufficient to specifically identify theuser. In a constructed embodiment, the information obtained comprises apostal zip code associated with the user, and a State where the userresides. Personal information such as the users and members name, e-mailaddress, residence address, social security number, telephone number,and the like is not obtained in step 107. In accordance with the presentdisclosure, the foregoing step provides useful information to mainserver system 12 in the selection of PGS-GM-CL/I-SN informationappropriate for the user (e.g., geographic area). PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation from merchants located geographically proximate the usersand members residence can be more easily redeemed by the user, thusincreasing the efficacy of the PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information offer. Otherinformation, such as the type of Internet connection (e.g., modem), canalso be obtained from the user in step 107.

In step 108, main server system 12 registers the “new” user device. Mainserver system 12 determines whether the user of remote client system 14is a “new” user device based on the presence and/or absence of DeviceIDdata 30 in a message from client system 14 to main server system 12. The“new” user device is then registered on main server system 12. Mainserver system 12 is configured to register the new user by performing,among other things, the steps of allocating a new DeviceID data 30, andassociating the new DeviceID data 30 with the user information obtainedin step 107. Through the foregoing, remote client system 14 can alwaysbe identified by its DeviceID data 30.

In step 109, client system 14 and main server system 12 communicate soas to update the master category list, plugins, brand logo information,advertising data and PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information data at the remoteclient system 14. This is done, for the first time client applicationsoftware 28 is executed, by searching the main server system 12 for newinformation that has come into being between the time the installationand/or setup program that the user used to install client system 14 waspopulated with such data (the “sync” date), and the present time (theserver date). The identified information is downloaded to thereby updateclient system 14. This step ensures that the user of client system 14has the most up-to-date information in these categories. The method thenproceeds to step 110 wherein main client application software 28 isexecuted.

When the answer to step 106 is “NO”, then the method branches to step112. In step 112, client application determines whether client system 14is “online.” Client system 14 is “online” when the user is connected tothe Internet such that client system 14 can communicate with main serversystem 12. While this basic step are described in greater detail below(FIG. 9), it bears emphasizing that client system 14, in an exemplaryembodiment, will not force a connection to Internet 16. Rather, if thereis no “online” connection, the user of client system 14 will have accessto PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information in an “offline” mode of operation. Thus,if the answer to step 112 is “NO”, then the method branches to step 110.Otherwise, when the answer step 112 is “YES”, then the method branchesto step 114.

In step 114, main server system 12 identifies the remote client system14 based on a DeviceID data 30 provided by client system 14. In thisway, main server system 12 can utilize the information “on file”, suchas state and zip code, for a variety of purposes. In a constructedembodiment, the state and zip code data are included in a request byfront-end server 20 to database server 24 to select a server that willservice this user for this session (described in detail in connectionwith FIG. 10). The response to the request is a virtual IP address to aparticular handler 22, and a selected database “name” of a selecteddatabase server 24.

In step 116, main server system 12, particularly the assigned handler 22and database server 24, is updated with any information contained inuser history data 34 that has not yet been uploaded and processed. Theuser history file contains information indicative of actions taken by,or, events occurring in response to actions taken by, the user of remoteclient system 14. As described above, user history data 34 containsinformation such as the identity of PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information selected,PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information printed, advertising impressions displayed inadvertising pane 72, etc. The assigned handler 22 in conjunction withdatabase server 24 uses the user history file in at least two ways: (i)to produce data from which a user script can be built by the remoteclient system 14 and, (ii) to update the user transaction historydatabase 60, which can then be queried to prepare reports that areprovided as feedback to the various advertising sponsors, PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation issuers, and PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information referral agents.

Step 118 involves obtaining a client script for execution by clientsystem 14. Step 118 includes the substep of identifying PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation at main server system 12 suitable for the user. What issuitable for any particular user can be based on DeviceID data 30, theuser information associated with DeviceID data 30, the mainPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information categories selected by the user, the OSplatform (e.g., MAC OS vs. Windows), the version of client applicationsoftware 28, the cobrand ID, and the promotional code, if any. Use ofthese criteria can be either inclusive and/or exclusive. Client system14 can be sent lists of undownloaded PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information,undownloaded ads, etc. The lists can only identify, for example, thePGS-GM-CL/I-SN information to be downloaded (not the PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation itself). Steps 120, 122, and 124 involve obtaining theactual PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information data, ad data, etc.

In step 120, the master category list, plugins, and brand logoinformation is updated, based on execution of the client script byclient system 14. Particularly, client system 14 works through the listof needed items. In step 122, advertising data comprising advertisingimpressions from advertising database 52 are updated at the remoteclient system 14. This step ensures that the user has the mostup-to-date advertising available. Again, client system 14 works througha list of needed ads, sequentially making requests from database server24.

In step 124, PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information data from PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation database 50 is updated at remote client system 14. Updatingof the PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information data includes retrievingPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information data corresponding to the identifiedPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information (i.e., the list provided as part of theclient script).

FIG. 11 shows the steps performed on main server system 12 to register anew user device. The process begins in step 176 with commencement of theregistration routine. In step 178, a new DeviceID data 30 is calculatedby database server 24. In step 180, a new entry and/or record is createdin a user profile table. The profile entry will associate DeviceID data30 with the user information collected from the user. The method thenproceeds to step 182.

In step 182, database server 24 determines whether a “sync date” wasprovided from client system 14. This is a date that describes how“up-to-date” client system 14 is, particularly the PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation and advertising information portions thereof. The use of thesync date has been described above in connection with FIG. 4. This “syncdate” is automatically provided from client system 14 to database server24 via the assigned handler 22. If a “sync date” was not provided byclient system 14, then the method branches to step 184 where a nominalsync date based on the version of the software installed on the clientsystem is used for downloading and updating purposes. Alternatively, ifthe answer to step 182 is “YES”, then the method branches to step 186.

In step 186, the date provided by client system 14 is used as the “syncdate” to synchronize the data on client system 14 relative to the masterdata on main server system 12. It should be emphasized that the “syncdate” is not a date that client application software 28 solicits fromthe user, but rather, is simply a date available within clientapplication software 28 relating to how “current” the data is (i.e.,PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information/advertising data, etc.). In either case, themethod proceeds to and ends at step 188.

FIGS. 9, 10 and 11 show step 120 (FIG. 4) in greater detail. Referringto FIG. 12, step 190 represents a request to obtain a master categorylist (i.e., the up-to-date list). This request is made from clientsystem 14 to the selected database server 24 via handler 22. Such arequest is directed to the selected “virtual” IP address as describedabove. The master PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information category list (e.g.,“Athletics”, “Automotive”, “Internet Electronics”, etc.) can be updatedon main server system 12, particularly database server 24. That is,categories can be added, and/or categories can be deleted. In eithercase, such a change are reflected in user interface 62 of the respectiveclient systems 14 when the next session is invoked by a user.

In step 192, all undeleted master PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information categories,along with their display color (as displayed on display device 40 ofclient system 14) are reported out to client system 14 for use by clientapplication software 28. Step 194 ends the master PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation category list updating process.

Referring now to FIG. 13, step 196 represents a request from clientsystem 14 to database server 24 via handler 22 to obtain a new and/or anup-to-date plugin(s). It should be understood that for an existing user,client system 14 can be executing a client script that includes a listcontaining needed plugins. The process outlined in FIG. 13 would beexecuted for each plugin on the list.

In step 198, database server 24 performs a look-up of the needed pluginto locate the corresponding plugin file (or image).

In step 200, an “image” and/or copy of the file of the sought-afterplugin is encrypted in accordance with a server system encryptionstrategy, and is reported and/or transmitted via Internet 16 to clientsystem 14. In step 202, the plugin update process is completed.

Referring now to FIG. 14, steps 204-222 illustrate the steps involved indetermining whether to maintain a default brand logo in logo pane 74(FIG. 3A), or, in the alternative, whether to download a different brandlogo. While a default brand and/or company logo is associated withclient system 14 initially, the default can be changed. For example, auser of Internet 16 can be informed of the existence of PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation distribution system 10 by a third-party vendor who alsomaintains a website, and refers that Internet user to website server 18of main server system 12. The referral mechanism, a hyperlink and/or thelike to website server 18, appends the identification of the referringvendor to the HTTP reference (the ID herein referred to as the “cobrandID”). Website server 18 is configured to recognize and respond to suchappended data (the cobrand ID) by putting a “cookie” (i.e., a file usedby Internet browser programs) on such Internet users and members'computer system that contains the cobrand ID. Then, if such potentialuser of PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information distribution system 10 decides todownload and install the client software, the client installationsoftware will search for the “cookie.” If it finds the “cookie”, andcertain other qualifying criteria are satisfied, then the cobrand ID arepassed to main server system 12 upon installation with a request todownload the text and/or image data of the other (non-default) brandlogo.

Some client systems 14 are deployed with both a default brand logo, andan alternate brand logo (including text/images), in alternativeembodiments. The following steps apply when client application software28 determines that it should display an alternate brand logo. In step204, client system 14 requests a brand logo (non-default). The processproceeds to step 206. In step 206, database server 24 determines whetherclient system 14 provided a date along with the request for thealternate brand logo. If so, then client system 14 already has thetext/images corresponding to the brand logo and just needs to determinewhether to turn the requested brand logo “on” at client system 14.

Thus, if the answer to step 206 is “YES”, then the method branches tostep 208. In step 208, database server 24 conducts a look-up todetermine an activation date for the subject brand logo. The method thenproceeds to step 210. In step 210, database server 24 determines whetherthe client-provided date is “older” than the current activation date. If“YES”, then the method branches to step 212, where the new activationdate is reported out to client system 14. Client system 14 willtherefore defer activation of the alternate, non-default brand logountil such new date. Otherwise, the method branches to step 214, wheredatabase server 24 reports an “ok” to client system 14. Client system 14will then implement (i.e., display) the brand logo corresponding to thecobrand ID.

When the method branches to step 216, (a “NO” to step 206), databaseserver 24 performs another test to determine whether client system 14asked for text corresponding to the cobrand ID. If “YES”, then themethod branches to step 218, where the textual information is encryptedaccording to a server system encryption strategy, and reported out toclient system 14. Otherwise, step 220 is performed, where image datacorresponding to the cobrand ID is encrypted (according to a serversystem encryption strategy), and reported to client system 14. Themethod ends in step 222.

FIG. 15 shows step 122 (“updating advertising data”) of FIG. 4 ingreater detail. In particular, steps 224-232 illustrate, in accordancewith the present disclosure, that advertising text, and images areencrypted to thereby provide secure transmission to client system 14. Itshould be understood that for an existing user device, client system 14can be executing a client script that includes a list containing neededadvertising impressions. The process outlined in FIG. 15 would beexecuted for each advertising impression on the list. Step 224 marks thebeginning of the advertising update method.

In step 226, main server system 12 determines whether the user, moreparticularly client system 14, is requesting “text” and/or “image”advertising data. If the answer is “text”, then the method proceeds tostep 228. In step 228, main server system 12, particularly databaseserver 24, encrypts the text of the advertising data, and reports outthe resulting encrypted advertising data. It should be understood thisencryption occurs in accordance with a server system encryptionstrategy.

Otherwise, the method proceeds to step 230 when the advertising datarequested is “image” data. In step 230, the advertising data (“image”data) is encrypted by main server system 12 according to a main serversystem encryption strategy, resulting in encrypted advertising imagedata. The encrypted ad image data is then reported out to client system14. Step 232 defines the end of the advertising update process.

Referring now to FIG. 18, after the user history codes from user historydata 34 have been extracted and decoded, a “client script” is built byclient system 14 based on information (e.g., lists) from handler 22 incooperation with database server 24. The client script providesinstructions for main server system 12 to execute. In step 266, clientsystem 14 issues a request to handler 22 to obtain the “user” and/or“client” script. The client script is then returned to client system 14.Step 268 show the execution of the client script by client system 14,which issues the commands shown in the steps 268-290. In step 268,client system 14 issues commands via handler 22 to database server 24 tocreate user transaction records for any new plugins, main PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation categories, advertising data, and/or PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation data received by client system 14 since the last clientscript was retrieved. In step 270, client system 14 issues commands viahandler 22 to database server 24 to check existing user transactionrecords for any deletions. Any deletions are processed whereby theaffected user transaction record is modified to indicate that the clientPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information has been deleted. In step 272, client system14, in execution of the client script, issues a command via handler 22to database server 24 to report all undownloaded plugins. Databaseserver 24, through handler 22, returns a message containing a listing ofall undownloaded plugins. This list is processed by client system 14after the client script has been completed. In step 274, client system14, in execution of the client script, issues a command via handler 22to database server 24 to report all undownloaded advertisingimpressions. Database server 24 returns a list of all undownloaded adimpressions. In step 276, client system 14, in execution of the clientscript, issues a command via handler 22 to database server 24 to reportall undeleted PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information. In step 278, client system 14,in execution of the client script, issues a command via handler 22 todatabase server 24 to determine whether any of the main PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation categories have been changed. If the answer to this inquiryis “YES”, then flow of the process continues at step 280, wherein thedatabase server 24 reports to client system 14 that a new mastercategory list is needed. Flow then proceeds to step 282.

If the answer to the inquiry in step 278 is “NO”, then flow of theprocess proceeds to step 282. In step 282, client system 14, inexecution of the client script, issues a command via handler 22 todatabase server 24 to report all undownloaded PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation. Database server 24 returns a listing of all undownloadedPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information. In step 284, client system 14, in executionof the client script, issues a command via handler 22 to database server24 to report the current official software version. Database server 24returns the latest version number. In step 286, database server 24 isrequested to record the current time as the last user login. Flow of theprocess then continues to step 290, which marks the end of the clientscript execution.

In FIG. 11, steps 346-350 illustrate the response of client applicationsoftware 28 when a user “clicks” and/or otherwise selects logo pane 74of user interface 62 (best shown in FIG. 3A). Step 346 marks thebeginning of the routine. Step 346 is entered when client applicationsoftware 28 (via the OS) detects that the user has “clicked” on and/orotherwise selected a portion of logo pane 74.

In step 348, client application software 28 invokes an Internet browserregistered with the operating system of client system 14 as the defaultbrowser and passes thereto a URL. The Internet browser then connects toa website server resource corresponding to the specified URL. This“click” action, therefore, takes the user to the website of the companydisplayed in logo pane 74. Step 350 marks the end of this routine.

FIG. 12 shows the response of client application software 28 when a user“clicks” on and/or otherwise selects a portion of advertising pane 72(best shown in FIG. 3A). Step 352 marks the beginning of the routine. Instep 354, client application software 28 creates a click-through historyrecord indicative of the fact that the user has “clicked” and/orotherwise selected the advertiser displayed in advertising pane 72. Thisis included in user history data 34, which will thereafter be encryptedand transmitted to main server system 12 for processing.

In step 356, the client application software 28 launches an Internetbrowser registered with the operating system of client system 14, andpasses thereto a URL corresponding to the advertiser displayed inadvertising pane 72. When the Internet browser executes, it connects toa website server resource defined by the URL. In-effect, the foregoingactions take the user to the advertisers website specified in the URL.Step 358 marks the end of this routine.

FIG. 13 illustrates a response taken by client application software 28when a user “clicks” on and/or otherwise selects an item appearing inPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information subcategory list 68 (best shown in FIG. 3A).Step 360 marks the beginning of the process. Step 360 is entered whenclient application software 28 (via the OS) determines that an item inPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information subcategory list 68 has been “clicked” on. Instep 362, client application software 28 determines whether theselection was a “click” and/or a “double-click.” Depending on which ofthese events occurred, client application software 28 will takealternative courses of action. If the action is a single-click, then themethod branches to step 364.

In step 364, the local PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information database is locked byclient application software 28. The process proceeds to step 366. Instep 366, the selected subcategory item is retrieved from the localdatabase on client system 14. In step 368, the contents ofPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information list 70 is reset by client applicationsoftware 28 according to the contents of the new subcategory. Forexample, if the new subcategory pertains to PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information,then the new PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information associated with the new selectedsubcategory is displayed in PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information list 70 (bestshown in FIG. 3A). In step 370, client application software 28determines and/or otherwise selects an advertising impression to bedisplayed in advertising pane 72 in accordance with a predeterminedadvertising impression selection strategy. In the illustratedembodiment, the selection criteria includes the identity of the selectedPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information subcategory. In step 372, a test is performedby client application software 28 to determine whether the newlyselected advertising impression is different from the advertisingimpression currently being displayed. If the answer is “YES”, then theprocess branches to step 374, where the new advertising impression isdisplayed in advertising pane 72, and an advertising impression historyrecord is created for inclusion in the user history data 34. The methodproceeds to step 376, which exits the thread shown in FIG. 13.

If the answer to step 372 is “NO”, however, then the process branches tostep 376, which is an exit step. If the action evaluated in step 362 isdetermined to be a “double click”, then the process branches to step378. “Double clicking” PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information subcategory is a userrequest to refresh the contents of that subcategory. In step 378, clientapplication software 28 creates a refresh history event for thatsubcategory. In step 380, client application software 28 sends to thedatabase thread a request to flush the current history. The contents ofthat subcategory are then downloaded (available on display device 40) asif they were new. In step 382, a message is sent to the database threadto do idle processing.

FIG. 14 illustrates the process carried out by client applicationsoftware 28 when the “Add to Cart” button 78 is “clicked” on and/orotherwise selected by the user. Step 398 is invoked when clientapplication software 28 (VIA the OS) determines that the Add to Cartbutton has been “clicked” on. The process then proceeds to step 400. Instep 400, client application software 28 performs a test to determinewhether there is PGS-GM-CL/I-SN product or service information currentlydisplayed in PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information display area 76. If the answerto step 400 is “NO”, then the method branches to step 414, which is anexit step. If the answer to step 400 is “YES”, then the method branchesto step 402. In step 402, client application software 28 determineswhether the PGS-GM-CL/I-SN product or service information currentlybeing displayed in PGS-GM-CL/I-SN product or service information displayarea 76 is already in the cart. If the answer to this inquiry is “YES”,then the method branches to step 404. In step 404, client applicationsoftware 28 causes a predetermined message to be displayed in messagedisplay area 94 advising, for example, the user that the PGS-GM-CL/I-SNproduct or service information is already in queue of the cart. Thisinsures that PGS-GM-CL/I-SN product or service information is not addedto the shopping cart more times than the user desires. If the userin-fact wishes to make multiple entries of a product or service into theshopping cart, the user can alternatively click on the “add to cart”button to add more than one product or service to the shopping cart. Theprocess then proceeds to step 414, which is an exit step.

If the answer to step 402 is “NO”, then the method branches to step 406.In step 406, client application software 28 determines whether theproposed adding to the cart of the product or service corresponding tothe PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information displayed is confirmed as an error by theuser. If the answer to this step is “YES”, then the method branches tostep 408. In step 408, an appropriate message is displayed to the userin message display area 94, advising that the selected product orservice has been removed from the cart. The method then proceeds to step414, which is an exit step.

If the answer to step 406 is “NO”, then the method branches to step 410.In step 410, the PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information currently being displayed inPGS-GM-CL/I-SN information display area 76 is used to add a selectedproduct or service to the cart. The method proceeds to step 412, whereinmessage display area 94 is cleared, thereby clearing any pre-existingmessage displayed therein. The process then proceeds to step 414, whichis an exit step. For some PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information displayed, it is ofvalue to limit the number of times a specific user can access thePGS-GM-CL/I-SN information. For example, a particular vendor can wish tolimit the number of PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information available to a user to aspecific amount. Similarly, for clickable links from advertisers (i.e.,clickable advertisements), it is also of value to limit the number oftimes a specific user can click on the advertisement. In response to aclick on a clickable advertisement, a user is typically transferred toanother website that relates to the information present in the clickableadvertisement. By being able to limit the number of times a specificuser can click on the advertisement, the advertiser can be more certainthat the click on the advertisement was a true access and/or intendedclick by a particular user.

Limiting the clicking of clickable advertisements is particularly usefulto avoid click fraud. Click fraud can occur, for example, in pay perclick online advertising when a person, automated script, and/orcomputer program imitates a legitimate user of a web browser clicking onan ad for the purpose of generating a charge per click without havingactual interest in the target of the ads link. Pay per click advertisingis an arrangement in which webmasters (operators of web sites), actingas publishers, display clickable advertisements from advertisers, inexchange for a charge per click. By limiting the number of times aparticular client system 14 can click on a clickable advertisement to aset amount, e.g., three, the ability to commit click fraud issignificantly reduced. Moreover, if an advertiser can control the numberof clicks to a clickable advertisement from a particular client system14, the advertiser is more likely to increase the amount it will pay foreach unique click of the clickable advertisement. To promote controlover the clicking on of clickable advertisements, each clickableadvertisement can include an access limit, which defines the number oftimes any client system can click on the clickable advertisement. Forexample, if the access limit for a clickable advertisement is three,then client application software 28 of a particular client system 14would only be able to click on that clickable advertisement three times.In an exemplary embodiment, client application software 28 can beconfigured to allow access to the advertisement but not increment thecount for revenue generation purposes (e.g., search engine revenue,etc.).

The system for displaying an advertisement from an advertisementdatabase on a client computer on a network can include processingcircuit 502 configured to receive a display request for an advertisementand to provide access to display the advertisement. Processing circuit502 can be further configured to determine a revenue counting displaylimit and a number of times the advertisement has been displayed.Processing circuit 502 can also be configured to increment a revenueaccount and/or revenue counter based on a comparison of the number oftimes the advertisement has been displayed to the revenue countingdisplay limit.

The system for displaying an advertisement from an advertisementdatabase on a client computer on a network can also not increment therevenue account if the number of times the advertisement has beendisplayed exceeds the revenue counting display limit. The system fordisplaying an advertisement from an advertisement database on a clientcomputer on a network can also increment the revenue account if thenumber of times the advertisement has been displayed does not exceed therevenue counting display limit.

The system for displaying an advertisement from an advertisementdatabase on a client computer on a network can also include processingcircuit 502 and/or components thereof being configured to be partiallyoperated on main server system 12. Processing circuit 502 and/orcomponents thereof can also be configured to be partially operated onclient system 14 and/or client computing device. The system fordisplaying an advertisement from an advertisement database on a clientcomputer on a network can also include the revenue counting displaylimit being stored on main server system 12.

The access limit for each clickable advertisement could be stored, forexample, in database server 24, and/or in a secure area of client system14. In addition, for each clickable advertisement, a counter can bemaintained in the database server 24 for each DeviceID data 30. Thecounter counts the number of times a particular DeviceID data 30 hasclicked on the associated clickable advertisement.

The method for controlling access to PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information caninclude assigning an identifier (e.g., DeviceID data 30) to a clientcomputer and receiving a request from client application software 28operating on the client computer to view PGS-GM-CL/I-SN informationimage data for the PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information. The method can alsoinclude displaying the PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information image data on theclient computer and receiving a request to access the PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation from client application software 28. The request can includethe identifier assigned to the client computer. The method can alsoinclude determining an access limit for the PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information.The access limit being a number of times that the client computer ispermitted to access the PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information. The method can alsoinclude determining the number of times the PGS-GM-CL/I-SN informationhas been accessed based on the identifier and controlling access to thePGS-GM-CL/I-SN information based on the number of times thePGS-GM-CL/I-SN information has been accessed and the access limit.

The method can further include transmitting the PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation to the client computer based on the controlling step. Themethod can also include transferring the user to a website correspondingto the PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information in response to a request for moreinformation from the client computer. The method can also includeincrementing a counter associated with the PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information inresponse to the request wherein the counter corresponding to the numberof times the PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information has been accessed. The methodcan also include transmitting the PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information accessreport to a remote device. The method can further include that thePGS-GM-CL/I-SN information image data comprises a thumbnail image and anoverlay information.

It should be noted that access can include transmitting data to a printqueue, transmitting data based on clicking on and/or any other method ofactivating a hyper link, initiating a search (e.g., an internet searchengine, an intranet search engine, a local computing device search,and/or any other search known to a person skilled in the art),displaying data, receiving data, transmitting data and/or anycombination thereof. Access as used herein can refer to any of a numberof ways that client system 14 can be configured to provide access to theuser, in various alternative embodiments. It should also be noted thataccess limit can include number of times client system 14 can print anadvertisement, number of times client system 14 can send anadvertisement to a print queue, number of times client system 14 can beallowed to display an advertisement, the number of times client system14 can be allowed to click thorough a clickable link to display anadvertisement, the number of times client system 14 can be allowed todownload an advertisement from the advertisement server, the number oftimes a user can click on a link which is a result of a search performedon an internet search engine, and/or any other way client system 14 canbe allowed to access an advertisement. The access limit can be limits onother user accesses to advertisement. Accordingly, providing access,limiting access, and/or requesting access as used herein can refer tosteps relating to any of the above mentioned types of access.

FIGS. 15A and 15B are flow diagrams of processes for controlling thenumber of clicks to a clickable advertisement. As shown in FIG. 15A, instep 420, a request is received from client application software 28 of aparticular client system 14 to view clickable advertisements. Therequest preferably includes DeviceID data 30, which is a uniqueidentifier assigned to the client system 14 that uniquely identifiesclient system 14 making the request. The request can be made in responseto linking and/or accessing a particular website and/or by submittingthe request through user interface 62.

In step 422, an access limit is identified for each of the clickableadvertisements that are responsive to the received request. Based on thereceived request, main server system 12 can identify an appropriatehandler 22 and database server 24 for servicing the request. Handler 22accesses database server 24, which can includes a list of availableclickable advertisements, to identify the clickable advertisements(including PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information) responsive to the request and toidentify the access limits associated with those clickableadvertisements.

In step 424, for each of the clickable advertisements responsive to therequest, it is determined how many times each clickable advertisementhas been clicked on by client application software 28 and/or clientsystem 14 based on the associated DeviceID data 30. This information canbe determined by checking the values of the counters held in databaseserver 24 for each clickable advertisement corresponding to DeviceIDdata 30 provided in the request.

In step 426, clickable advertisements are made available to therequesting client system 14 that have been accessed (i.e., clicked on)by client system 14 fewer times than the access limit. To determine if aclickable advertisement should be made available, main server system 12compares the identified access limit to the determined number ofaccesses set in the corresponding counter. If the access limit isgreater than the determined number of accesses set in the correspondingcounter, then the clickable advertisement is made available to therequesting client system 14. On the other hand, if the access limit isequal to (or less than) the determined number of accesses set in thecorresponding counter, then the clickable advertisement is not madeavailable to the requesting client system 14. The clickableadvertisements made available to the client system 14 can be viewed, forexample, in advertising pane 72 and/or logo pane 74. Each of theclickable advertisements made available to client system 14 can beaccessed, i.e., clicked on, by the user at client system 14.

In step 428, in addition to making the clickable advertisement availableto be clicked on by the user at client system 14, if the clickableadvertisement is PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information, then the user is permittedto print PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information as well. To print PGS-GM-CL/I-SNinformation, the user can select the “Print Now” button 80, which printsthe PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information currently being viewed on printer 46. Instep 430, in response to the click of the clickable advertisement, thecounter associated with that clickable advertisement and correspondingto DeviceID data 30 of client application software 28 and/or clientsystem 14 is incremented. More specifically, client application software28 can generate a signal to main server system 12 indicating that theclickable advertisement has been clicked on, and based on that signalthe server increments the applicable counter in database server 24. Thesignal can include information identifying the clickable advertisement,as well as DeviceID data 30 of client system 14. Accordingly, each timea clickable advertisement is clicked on, the counter associated with theclickable advertisement is incremented, and once the count in thecounter reaches the access limit, the user at that client system 14 isno longer permitted to click on that clickable advertisement. It shouldbe noted that client system 14 can be a client computer.

The method for controlling access to advertisement in a network caninclude assigning an identifier to a client computer and receiving arequest from client application software 28 operating on the clientcomputer to access the advertisement. The request can include theidentifier assigned to the client computer. The advertisement can havean access limit. The method can also include determining the number oftimes that the advertisement has been accessed by the client computerbased on the identifier. The method can further include comparing thenumber of times the advertisement has been accessed to the access limitand providing the client computer with access to the advertisement basedon the comparison. The method can also include sending to the clientcomputer the advertisement if the access limit has not been exceeded.The method can further include transferring the user to a websitecorresponding to the advertisement if the access limit has not beenexceeded. The method can further include refusing access for the clientcomputer to the advertisement if the access limit has been met and/orexceeded. The method can also include sending to the client computer amessage indicating that access has been refused. The method can alsoinclude incrementing the access counter based on receiving the requestfrom the client application operating on the client computer to accessthe advertisement. The method can further include transmitting anadvertisement access report to a remote server. The method can furtherinclude the identifier being assigned to the client computer by theclient application. The method can also include that the identifierbeing assigned to the client computer is not one of a DeviceID data 30and/or an Internet protocol address. The method can also includeencrypting the advertisement at a server to generate a first encryptedadvertisement and further encrypting the first encrypted advertisementat the client computer to generate a second encrypted advertisement.

The system for monitoring access to an advertisement can includeprocessing circuit configured to determine an advertisement access limitand the number of times the advertisement has been accessed, accordingto an exemplary embodiment. The system can further include processingcircuit being configured to be partially operated on a server, accordingto an exemplary embodiment. The system can also include processingcircuit being configured to be partially operated on a client computingdevice, according to an exemplary embodiment. The system can furtherinclude processing circuit being configured to receive a request toaccess an advertisement, according to an exemplary embodiment. Therequest can include an identifier assigned to the computing device,according to an exemplary embodiment. Processing circuit can determinethe number of times that the advertisement has been accessed by thecomputing device based on the identifier, according to an exemplaryembodiment. Processing circuit can generate a comparison based on anaccess counter module/circuit data and an access limit module/circuitdata, according to an exemplary embodiment. Processing circuit cantransmits an access control signal based on the comparison, according toan exemplary embodiment. The system can also include processing circuitdetermining that the access limit has not been exceeded based on thecomparison and transmits the advertisement to the computing device,according to an exemplary embodiment. The system can further include theuser being transferred to a website corresponding to the advertisementbased on a request for more information, according to an exemplaryembodiment. The system can also include processing circuit determiningthat the access limit has been exceeded and the advertisement is notsent to the computing device, according to an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 15B illustrates a process similar to the one in FIG. 15A. Like theprocess of FIG. 15A, in step 432 of FIG. 15B, a request is received fromthe client application software 28 to view clickable advertisements, therequest including DeviceID data 30 that uniquely identifies clientsystem 14 making the request. However, instead of checking the accesslimit of responsive clickable advertisements, all clickableadvertisements that are responsive to the request are made available tothe requesting client system 14 in step 434. To determine whichclickable advertisements are responsive, main server system 12 canidentify an appropriate handler 22 and database server 24 for servicingthe request. Handler 22 can access database server 24 to identify theclickable advertisements responsive to the request. The user at clientsystem 14 can try to click on any of the clickable advertisement madeavailable to client system 14.

In step 436, in response to clicking on a selected clickableadvertisement, a request is received by main server system 12 for accessto that clickable advertisement. The request can include informationidentifying the selected clickable advertisement, as well as DeviceIDdata 30 of the requesting client system 14. In step 438, in response tothe received request, an access limit is identified for the selectedclickable advertisement. More particularly, main server system 12 canidentify an appropriate handler 22 to access database server 24 andidentify the access limits associated with the selected clickableadvertisement. In step 440, it is determined how many times the selectedclickable advertisement has been clicked on by client applicationsoftware 28 and/or client system 14 based on the associated DeviceIDdata 30. This information can be determined by checking the values ofthe counter held in database server 24 for the selected clickableadvertisement corresponding to DeviceID data 30 provided in the request.

In step 442, the user is permitted to click on and access the selectedclickable advertisement if it is determined that the clickableadvertisement has been accessed by client system 14 fewer times than theaccess limit. To determine if a clickable advertisement should be madeavailable, main server system 12 compares the identified access limit tothe determined number of accesses (i.e., clicks) set in thecorresponding counter. If the access limit is greater than thedetermined number of accesses set in the corresponding counter, then theuser is permitted to click on and access the clickable advertisement atthe requesting client system 14. On the other hand, if the access limitis equal to (or less than) the determined number of accesses set in thecorresponding counter, then the user is not permitted to click on andaccess the clickable advertisement at client system 14. If permitted toclick on and access the clickable advertisement, and the clickableadvertisement is PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information, then the user can print oradd to a cart the PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information, for example, by selectingthe “Print Now” button 80, which prints the PGS-GM-CL/I-SN informationcurrently being viewed on printer 46.

In step 444, in response to the click of a clickable advertisement, thecounter associated with that clickable advertisement and correspondingto DeviceID data 30 of client application software 28 and/or clientsystem 14 is incremented. More specifically, client application software28 can generate a signal to main server system 12 indicating that theaccessed clickable advertisement has been clicked on, and based on thatsignal main server system 12 increments the applicable counter indatabase server 24. The signal can include information identifying theclickable advertisement, as well as DeviceID data 30 of client system14. Accordingly, each time a clickable advertisement is clicked on andaccessed, the counter associated with the clickable advertisement isincremented, and once the count in the counter reaches the access limit,no user at that client system 14 is permitted to click on and accessthat clickable advertisement.

The method for controlling access to a clickable advertisement in anetwork includes assigning a computer identifier to a client computerand receiving a request from client application software 28 operating onthe client computer to access the clickable advertisement. The requestincludes the computer identifier assigned to the client computer. Theclickable advertisement having an access limit. The access limit beingthe number of times that the client computer is permitted to access theclickable advertisement. The method can include determining the numberof times that the clickable advertisement has been accessed by theclient computer based on the computer identifier. The method also caninclude comparing the number of times the clickable advertisement hasbeen accessed to the access limit. The method can include providing theclient computer with access to the clickable advertisement based on thecomparison and storing the comparison. The method can further includesending to the client computer the clickable advertisement based on thecomparison because the comparison determined that the access limit hasnot been exceeded.

The method can further include transferring the user to a websitecorresponding to the clickable advertisement based on the comparisonbecause the comparison determined that the access limit has not beenexceeded. The method can further include refusing access for the clientcomputer to the clickable advertisement based on the comparison becausethe comparison determined that the access limit has been exceeded. Themethod can also include sending a message to the client computerindicating that access has been refused. The method can further includeincrementing an access counter based on receiving the request fromclient application software 28 operating on the client computer toaccess the clickable advertisement. The method can further includetransmitting a clickable advertisement access report.

Referring to FIG. 16, a flow diagram 600 of the process for controllingclicks to a clickable advertisement is shown, according to an exemplaryembodiment. In step 602, the system loads an offers list onto the clientdevice, a server, and/or another computing device. An offers list is aset of advertisements, PGS-GM-CL/I-SN information, websites, and/or anyother offers. In step 604, the system detects the cart control of theclient device, server, and/or another computing device. In step 606, thesystem determines whether the cart manager are installed. If the cartmanager are installed, then the process moves to step 608. In step 608,the system installs the cart manager and receives DeviceID data 30 andsave it on client device, server, and/or another computing device. Afterinstalling cart manager and receiving DeviceID data 30 (step 608), theprocess moves to step 612. If the print manager will not be installed,then the process moves to step 610. In step 610, the system determineswhether the cart manager is already installed. If the cart manager isnot already installed, the process moves to step 614. In step 614, thesystem receives DeviceID data 30 and saves it on client device, server,and/or another computing device. In step 616, the system receives theoffering lists, limits per DeviceID data 30 and click limits perDeviceID data 30. If the cart manager is already installed, the processmoves to step 612. In step 612, the system receives the offering listsper DeviceID data 30 and click limits per DeviceID data 30. In step 618,the system determines whether the device limit has been reached. If thedevice limit has been reached, then in step 620 the system disablesaccess to the data requested by that device. If the device limit has notbeen reached, then the process moves to step 622. In step 622, thesystem determines whether the campaign limit has been reached. Acampaign limit can be a promotional limit, a budget limit, a sales limitand/or any other limit placed on the advertisement. If the campaignlimit has been reached, then the system in step 626 disables access tothe data for all devices. If the system determines that the campaignlimit has not been reached, then the system in step 624 registers theaccess to the data.

Referring to FIG. 17, illustrations of a screen display defining aninterface associated with a client system portion are shown, accordingto exemplary embodiments, e.g., as Social Earth. FIG. 17 is similar toFIGS. 3A and 3B with the added feature of being able to utilize a pulldown menus 652, 654, 656, and 658 to retrieve PGS-GM-CL/I-SN informationdata. It is to be understood that the above description is merelyexemplary rather than limiting in nature, the disclosure being limitedonly by the appended claims. Various modifications and changes can bemade thereto by one of ordinary skill in the art, which embody theprinciples of the disclosure and fall within the spirit and scopethereof. For example, one and/or more steps described herein as beingperformed by client system 14 and/or main server system 12 can beperformed by the other of client system 14 and/or main server system 12,and/or by both.

For example, a thin client can be operable on client system 14 tointerface with main server system 12. A thin client is a client computerand/or client software in client-server architecture networks, whichdepends primarily on the central server for processing activities, andmainly focuses on conveying input and output between the user and theremote server. In contrast, a thick and/or fat client does as muchprocessing as possible and passes only data for communications andstorage to the server. Many thin client devices run only web browsersand/or remote desktop software, meaning that all significant processingoccurs on the server.

The present invention provides in one aspect a delivery system for ageospatial website for a multidimensional representation of informationand/or scalable versions of web content for the delivery of Products,Goods & Services combined with /Geospatial Mapping/Company-LocalInformation/Social Networking/Communities (“PGS-GM-CL/I-SN”) on a threedimensional geospatial platform using geospatial mapping technology. Oneexample of an aspect of the invention is a geospatial website thataggregates, inter alia, ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobileservices, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, pennyauctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising orservices, including without limitation, such items as service providers,business centers and affiliates for related company information, mediaand entertainment, sports, personal & financial network, travel &hospitality services, real estate, educational services, ancillaryservices, penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements, serviceproviders, social networking, social networking communities, socialplugins, ad links, promotions, social applications, entertainmentshopping, penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements andaffiliate advertising or services, social networking, social networkingcommunities, online communications, messaging, user profiles, viewingpublic & private user profiles, online dating, gaming, retail stores,virtual communities and virtual goods and information about microloansor microcredit, humanitarian aid and support other worldly causesthrough charitable donations or sustainable gifts to those in need(collectively “Products, Goods & Services”) from around the world and/orshowcases them in their actual, physical location on the websites liveview of Earth in combination with social networking and/or sociallyconscious information and/or activities. The present invention addressesproblems and/or shortcomings of online products, goods or services,which should also provide socially conscious information about thecompanies that supply the coupons so that consumers can see where thecompanies and/or stores are located and can find out information aboutthe companies, communities they are located in, what interaction andhelp they provide to communities and/or other economic and/or sociallyresponsible activities, and to associate the geographical and othergeospatially available information connecting also by the use ofintegrated social media, which combination is not current providedand/or available.

As users and members and/or subscribers of the website, (e.g., “SocialShoppers”) shop the world for bargains, they can view ad links,promotions, online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services,entertainment shopping, penny auctions or online auctions,advertisements and affiliate advertising or services for such items ase.g., but not limited to, family fun, spoils, restaurants, events and/orhundreds of top consumer packaged goods brand/brandors for, e.g., butnot limited to, groceries, apparel, beverages, books & magazines, foods,health care, household, office, personal care, pet care, photographyand/or the like. Such users and members and/or subscribers (e.g.,“Social Shoppers”) can find great ad links, promotions, online coupons,mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping,penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliateadvertising or services from merchants and sellers from around the worldin the leading travel & hospitality industry, restaurants, toy and/orentertainment companies and/or top retailers around the world. Thedelivery system for a host geospatial website can provide for amultidimensional representation of information and/or scalable versionof web content for an infrastructure and global platform that providesusers and members and businesses of all types and sizes with access tobroad markets and connect buyers and sellers and to reach people at thepoint of shopping through GPS technology—a benefit both to shoppers andmerchants and delivery of ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobileservices, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, pennyauctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising orservices from merchants and sellers from around the world on a threedimensional geospatial platform using geospatial mapping technology. Ahost geospatial website can include realistic virtual landscape usingsatellite and/or aerial photography that can include many content layersof web based information, e-commerce and mobile banking links, socialnetworking, social networking communities, social plugins, ad links,promotions, social applications and/or advertisements for a richer userexperience. A host website shall store images, web-based content, socialdata and/or share live social feeds from social networks and/or othercommunications in real-time. Connecting ad links, promotions, onlinecoupons, mobile services Products, Goods & Services, entertainmentshopping, penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements andaffiliate advertising or services from merchants and sellers from aroundthe world with a highly-engaged social networking community of savvySocial Shoppers based upon a desired location in real-time on ageographical area across multiple social layers that are displayed asgraphic animated color overlays on a three dimensional geospatialplatform using geospatial mapping technology.” The invention can alsoprovide mobile payment method and/or system for effectuating an onlinepayment through a mobile device to complete an e-commerce and mobilebanking transaction on a three dimensional geospatial platform usinggeospatial mapping technology.

The invention can further provide in one aspect geospatial websiteaggregates ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobile services,Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, penny auctions oronline auctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising or servicesfrom merchants and sellers from around the world and/or showcases themin their actual, physical location on the websites unique live view ofEarth. As users and members and/or subscribers shop the world forbargains, they can view online ad links, promotions, online coupons,mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping,penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliateadvertising or services for such items as family fun, sports,restaurants, events and/or hundreds of top consumer packaged goodsbrand/brandors for groceries, apparel, beverages, books & magazines,foods, health care, household, office, personal care, pet care,photography and/or more! Social Shoppers can to find great product,goods or services deals from leading travel & hospitality, restaurant,toy and/or entertainment companies and/or top retailers around theworld. Social Shoppers can to use “a mobile device payment method and/orsystem for effectuating an online payment through a computer or mobiledevice equipped carrier and/or a mobile device equipped bank using amobile users and members device in connection with e-commerce and mobilebanking transactions on the host geospatial website via a computer ormobile device (e.g., mobile telephone, PDA, laptop computer, etc.);wherein users and members create and/or maintain a rich-mediaapplication via a geospatial mapping platform via the Internetcomprising: mobile banking and/or electronic payments. The deliverysystem for a host geospatial website can provide for a multidimensionalrepresentation of information and/or sealable version of web content forthe delivery of ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobile services,Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, penny auctions oronline auctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising or servicesfrom merchants and sellers from around the world on a three dimensionalgeospatial platform using geospatial mapping technology. A hostgeospatial website can include realistic virtual landscape usingsatellite and/or aerial photography that can include many content layersof web based information, e-commerce and mobile banking links, socialnetworking and/or virtual advertisements for a richer user experience.

A host geospatial website shall store images, web-based content, socialdata, social networking, social networking communities, ad links,promotions, social applications, user profiles, messaging, viewingpublic & private user profiles and live social feeds from socialnetworks such as Facebook™ and Twitter™, social plugins, socialapplications, advertisements and/or other communications based upon adesired location in real-time. Connecting ad links, promotions, onlinecoupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainmentshopping, penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements andaffiliate advertising or services with merchants and sellers from aroundthe world with Social Shoppers based upon a desired location inreal-time on a geographical area across multiple social layers that aredisplayed as graphic animated color overlays on a three dimensionalgeospatial platform using geospatial mapping technology. Morespecifically, it relates to a method for users and members known as“Social Shoppers” to effectuate banking and/or electronic payments;accessing a user account, engaging in mobile social networking, socialnetworking communities, social networking activities and/or viewing userprofiles, sending messages, online communications, viewing public &private user profiles and other available options via a threedimensional geospatial mapping platform using geospatial mappingtechnology.

The foregoing description of exemplary embodiments of the disclosure hasbeen presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is notintended to be exhaustive and/or to limit the disclosure to the preciseform disclosed, and modifications and variations are possible in lightof the above teachings and/or can be acquired from practice of thedisclosure. The embodiments (which can be practiced separately and/or incombination) were chosen and described in order to explain theprinciples of the disclosure and as a practical application to enableone skilled in the art to make and use the disclosure in variousembodiments and with various modifications suited to the particular usescontemplated. It is intended that the scope of the disclosure is notlimited to the disclosure herein, but covers any embodiment expressed toone of ordinary skill in the relevant arts in combination with what isknown in the art, and their equivalents.

A geographic information system (GIS) (also called geographic mappingand/or “GM”) is a computer technology that provides an analyticalframework for managing and integrating data, solving problems, and/orunderstanding past, present, and/or future situations. A GIS can linkinformation and/or attributes to location data (hereinafter referred toas a “feature”), for example, people to addresses, buildings to parcels,and/or streets within a network. GIS and/or GM can further layer suchinformation to present a better and/or clearer understanding of how manydifferent variables interrelate and/or work together. Layers can be inthe form of colored and/or textured overlays, graphics, icons, graphs,and/or other visual indicators of data in context with a geographiclocation associated with the data.

A GIS and/or GM is most often associated with maps formed within aframework of a common coordinate system, such as the World GeodeticSystem 1984 (WGS84). Reference locations within the framework can bespecified by and/or translated to and/or from locations defined within acommon coordinate system, so as to allow integration of disparate dataand functionality with a geospatial browser. A map, however, is only oneway a user can work with geographic data in a GIS and/or GM and is onlyone type of output generated by a GIS and/or GM. Furthermore, a GISand/or GM can provide many more problem-solving capabilities than usinga simple mapping program and/or adding data to an online mapping tool(e.g., in a “mash-up”).

Generally, a GIS and/or GM can be viewed in at least three ways, (1) asa database; (2) as a map; and/or (3) as a model. As a database, a GISprovides a unique kind of database relating to the Earth and/or othermapped region, such as a geographic database and/or geo-database.Fundamentally, a GM is based on a structured database that describes themapped region in geographic terms. GM maps can be either two and/orthree dimensional in presentation. GM maps are generally constructed of“tiles” that are unit areas of a geographic region. Tiles can beidentified in the database by coordinate boundaries and/or individualreference identifications allocated to each tile. The number of tilescovering a particular geographic region will vary depending upon theresolution of the map requested; a high resolution map (e.g., 1 m) of ageographic area will have substantially more tiles than a lowerresolution map of the same area. Maps combining the underlyinggeographic information with overlays of associated data can beconstructed and used as “windows into the database” to support queries,analysis, and editing of the information in a process called“geo-visualization.” As a model, a GM is a set of informationtransformation and/or “geo-processing” tools that derive new geographicdatasets from existing datasets. This geo-processing functionality cantake information from existing datasets, apply analytic functions, andwrite results into new derived datasets that show features and featurerelationships with the mapped region and present the results to a user.

A GM allows mapping of locations and things and identification of placeswith requested features. GIS mapping can provide information aboutindividual feature and/or present a distribution of features on a map toidentify patterns. GM and/or GIS mapping can be based upon and/orfiltered by quantities, for example, locations of most and least of afeature. GM and/or GIS mapping can also find and establish relationshipsbetween places, features, conditions, and/or events and determine wherecertain criteria are met and/or not met. GM and/or GIS mapping can alsopresent densities to view concentrations. A density map allowsmeasurement of a number of features using a uniform area unit, such asacres and/or square miles, to clearly present the distribution. Thisfunctionality provides an additional level of information beyond simplymapping the locations of features.

GM and/or GIS can also be used to depict events occurring within and/ornearby an area. For example, a district attorney might monitordrug-related arrests to find out if an arrest is within 1,000 feet of aschool; if so, stiffer penalties can apply. GM and/or GIS can be used todetermine items within a set distance of a feature by mapping an areawithin a range of the feature. GM and/or GIS can also be used to map thechange in an area to anticipate future conditions, decide on a course ofaction, and/or to evaluate the results of an action and/or policy. Bymapping where and how things move over a period of time, insight intotrends and/or behaviors can be gained.

GM and/or GIS can be used to map changes to anticipate future needs. Forexample, a police chief might study how crime patterns change from monthto month to help decide where officers should be assigned. GM and/or GIScan also be used to map conditions before and after an action and/orevent to see the impact. For example, a retail analyst might map thechange in store sales before and after a regional ad campaign to seewhere the ads were most effective.

A GM and/or GIS can be implemented in a geospatial decision managementsystem (GDMS) 100, shown in FIG. 18 to provide the geo-processing powerand infrastructure to process the data and render geo-visualizations ofthe data in a user interface. The GDMS 100 of FIG. 18 can be implementedin a combination of a server computer system 102, one and/or more clientcomputer systems 104, and various data sources 106, 108, and 110. GDMSdata can be saved in the GDMS server system 102 and/or in a datastore106, 108, and 110 at a local and/or remote location. The data sources106 and 108 are depicted as local to the server system 102, whereas thedata source 110 is depicted as coupled remotely to the server system 102via a communications network 112. GDMS data can also be cached in aproxy server.

The client system 104 can be coupled remotely to the server system 102via a communication network 114 (or alternatively, the samecommunications network 112), although a local connection between theclient system 104 and the server system 102 can be employed. It shouldbe understood that multiple client systems can be coupled with theserver system 102 concurrently. It should also be understood that theclient system 104 and server system 102 can be implemented in anintegrated system. The network connection 114, such as an Internetconnection, can be used by GDMS client systems 104 to access the data(e.g., data defining layers and/or providing financial information,chemical concentrations, test results, project state reports, etc.) atthe remote data sources 106, 108, 110, directly and/or through anintermediate computing system (e.g., a proxy server and/or GDMS server).

The client computer 104 can be coupled to an intermediate server, suchas a proxy server 118. The proxy server 118 can be positioned betweenthe client computer 104 and the server system 102. The proxy server 118intercepts all requests to the server system 102 to see if it canfulfill the requests itself with cached data from prior requests. Ifnot, the proxy server 118 forwards the request to the server system 102to be fulfilled. The proxy server 204 can also be coupled to thecommunications network 114 and accessed by the client computer 104 andthe server system 102 via the network 114. Firewalls 116 can also beimplemented between the server system 102 and the client computer 104and the network 114 for an added layer of security.

The connection can be established as a secure connection between theclient system 104 and the server 102 and/or the remote data sources 106,108 and 110. The secure connection can be accomplished by a variety ofdifferent methods including, but not limited to, authentication codesand passwords, secure user management tools, firewalls, userauthentication, secure user management tools, user pathway mappingand/or encryption, etc. In another example, the server system 102 caninclude an administrative website that can allow authorized users andmembers to manipulate and assign user rights (e.g., an administrativetier). The server system 102 can also include a security feature, forexample, an access control module 136 to establish, control, and monitoraccess by client computers 104 to certain data stored within and/oraccessible within the GDMS 100. Access control can be governed by anadministrator and/or it can be an automated function of the accesscontrol module 136 based upon attributes of the data requested andpermissions held by the user as further described below.

The server system 102 can represent one and/or more hardware andsoftware servers providing multiple server functions. In addition, oneand/or more of the server system 102, the client system 104, and thedatabases 106, 108 and 110 can form an N-tier system. The server system102 can also include a web server application subsystem, whereby WorldWide Web-enabled applications can provide various aspects offunctionality of the GDMS 100. For example, the server system 102 canprovide a website where content creators and/or generators can uploadgeospatially-related data that can be transformed into featuresreferenced to locations within a map of the GDMS 100 for access throughthe client system 104 connected to the GDMS 100 for geo-visualization ofthe information. In an alternative implementation, the client system 104can be implemented as a “thick” client and execute client-installedsoftware for some and/or all of the functionality of the GDMS 100.

A monitor 120, coupled to the client system 104, presents a GDMSinterface 122 constructed from data and functionality received throughthe server system 102. When a user is working within a GDMS 100, s/he issaid to be in a GDMS session. The GDMS interface 122 can be generated bya GDMS application executing on the client system 104 and/oralternatively through a server-executed GDMS application that providesthe interface components over the network to a dumb terminal and/or abrowser application running on the client system 104. The GDMS interface122 can be a geospatial browser window including a map 124 (e.g., aglobe in this illustration), a geo-visualization of data as a layer 126and individual features 128 on the map 124, a layer manager 130 forselecting data and other features from the databases 106, 108, 110. TheGDMS view can also include tool palettes 132 and 134, which can bedistinct features of the browser interface, browser plug-ins, and/orseparate utilities and/or applications.

In one implementation, the GDMS interface 122 can be in the form of ageospatial browser window and one and/or more geospatially-referencedtools. Access to the data and/or functionality is provided bygeospatially-referenced tools (e.g., tool palettes 132 and 134) that areassociated with and triggered in relation to a specific location in acommon coordinate system (e.g., WGS84 and/or some other sharedcoordinate system) shared by the tools and the geospatial browser. Forexample, a tool can provide chemical analysis results pertaining to soilsamples taken from the location over time. In another example, a toolcan retrieve and analyze financial data pertaining to a constructionproject on a specified region on the map (e.g., a location). The dataavailable to such tools is provided from a variety of data sources andassociated with each location within the common coordinate system of theGDMS system 100, such as through specified coordinates (e.g., longitudeand latitude), other geographic constraints, and/or organizationalconstraints (e.g., a project identifier of a project having a specificgeographic location and/or constraint, a feature identifier of a featurehaving a specific geographic location and/or constraint, etc.). In thismanner, the user can view a location through the geospatial browser andaccess data and/or functionality associated with a location that isaccessible through the tools in the browser. These locations can be thesame location and/or distinct locations.

FIG. 19 further illustrates an example of a GDMS 200 for accessingspecific data and/or information within a database based on theassociation of the information with geospatial coordinates. Again, theGDMS 200 can be implemented by a GM and/or GIS server system 202 incommunication with a GM and/or GIS client computer 204 over acommunication network 208, e.g., the Internet. The GM and/or GIS clientcomputer 204 can be used to access information in a decision managementdatastore (DMD) 206 connected with the GM and/or GIS server system 202.The communication network 208 ideally provides the GM and/or GIS clientcomputer 204 with high-speed access to indexed data on the DMD 206.

The GM and/or GIS server system 202 can also include a security feature,for example, an access control module 222 to establish, control, andmonitor access by GM and/or GIS client computers 204 to certain datastored within and/or accessible via the DMD 206. Access control can begoverned by an administrator and/or it can be an automated functionbased upon attributes of the data requested and permissions held by theuser as further described below

The data retrieved from the DMD 206 can be presented in a user interface210, 216, 222, 224 (of which four exemplary configurations are presentedin FIG. 19 at the GM and/or GIS client computer 204. A feature presentedin the user interface 210 (e.g., a geospatial coordinate and/orgeographic location) on the client computer 204 can be used to accessinformation indexed by features using the DMD 206.

The GM and/or GIS client computer 204 can access the indexed data in theDMD 206 by using applications and/or plug-ins, such as technicalinterfaces 210, 216 and management interfaces 222, 224. The technicalinterfaces 210, 216 can be used to access technical data associated withparticular features. In exemplary implementations such technical datamight be biochemical, geochemical, hydro-geological, and/or otherphysical data on analytes. The management interfaces 118, 120 can beused to access business management data. In exemplary implementationssuch management data might be business and organizational documents anddata associated with particular features. Several examples of the use ofsuch tools to interface with the DMD 206 and extract the data arepresented below.

As shown in the first technical interface 210 in FIG. 19, if the GMand/or GIS client computer 204 requests information about a particularfeature, such as a ground water well located near an airport 212, the GMand/or GIS client computer 204 can select the feature 214, i.e., theground water well, to receive information related to that feature 214.The first technical interface 210 can include a concentric area datatool that can provide technical data related to the ground water wellfeature 214, for example, latitude and longitude, physical inspectiondata, water level information, and water contamination information, in athe form of information windows and visual geographic informationoverlays on a base location map. In an alternate implementation shown inthe second technical interface 216, technical data concerning an area ofland 220 around, adjacent, and/or near the airport 218 at the locationof the feature 214, for example, landscaping, slope, soil composition,and/or grading information can be presented.

In a further implementation shown in a first management interface 222, acontract management concentric data tool can provide management databased upon the selected feature 214, for example, information onconstruction and/or work in progress, zoning and/or easementinformation, and/or information on any contracts applicable to thefeature 214. In a further implementation shown in a second managementinterface 224, a finance management concentric data tool 120 can alsoprovide management data relating to financial information applying tothe feature 214 selected, for example, costs of past repairs and/orcurrent maintenance fees. In some implementations the managementinterfaces 222, 224 can further comprise a real-time link to a videocamera providing a view of the selected feature 214 and any constructionand/or activity occurring at the selected feature 214.

The GDMS shown in FIGS. 20 and 21 is an innovative, GM and/or GIS-basedmanagement decision support tool that optimizes the geo-processing andgeo-visualization of available GM and/or GIS data, for example, naturalresources, building resources, time-management resources, personnelresources, financial resources, and information resources, and others.The GDMS can enable a GM and/or GIS client to easily visualize andinterpret large, multifaceted, and complex information sets in order tomake comparative analyses of alternatives, identify potentialliabilities and opportunities, and optimize program strategies.

The GDMS provides full convergence, and/or integration, of multiple(essentially limitless) disparate data sets within a single virtualthree-dimensional (geospatial) model. The disparate data sets, and evensub-data sets within them, can be organized by association with relevantfeatures on the model. For example, groundwater analytical data can beassociated with a given groundwater well; building data can beassociated with a given building; installation information can beassociated with the installation; and command information can beassociated with the command. The GDMS full data convergence allows datato be accessed relative to position, scale, resolution, time, and othergeospatial attributes and serves as an extremely intuitive and efficientway to organize and access essentially limitless quantities ofinformation.

The GDMS allows queries, filters, and comparisons of data to becompleted at the GM and/or GIS server system and then visuallyrepresented in three dimensions in near real time at the GM and/or GISclient device. The three-dimensional representation of data helps usersand members gain a better understanding of the meaning contained withinthe data more rapidly than using traditional tabular and/ortwo-dimensional representations of data. The GDMS thus allows themeaning represented in the three-dimensional data to be rapidlycommunicated to users and members.

The GDMS improves on traditional closed and/or organization-specific GMand/or GIS by affording live connections to multiple databases. As thedatabases are updated, the representations afforded by GDMS can thus becurrent. This allows a fourth dimension, time, to be factored intoresource management decisions. Time is an important additional datafactor because previous “views” of the data can be compared to current“views” of the data, in order to gain an understanding of the rates ofchange (or dynamics) of the real system. In other words, the GDMS allowsfor differences between time states to be understood and factored into adecision process.

In FIG. 18 a GDMS 100 can be used to provide access to specific sectionswithin documents, which are associated with a particular geographiccoordinate, e.g., Products, Goods & Services-GeographicMapping-Company/Local Information-Social Networking (PSR-GM-C/L-SN)information. More specifically, a GDMS 100 user (or GM and/or GISclient) can select a specific location and/or ‘feature’ on a map and bedirected to Products, Goods & Services-Geographic Mapping-Company/LocalInformation-Social Networking (PSR-GM-C/L&SC-SN) information, e.g.,information and/or documents, as well as entire sets of informationand/or documents themselves associated with a promotion, online coupons,mobile services, Products, Goods or Services, entertainment shopping,penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliateadvertising or services, service providers, business centers andaffiliates for related company and/or local information, includingsocially conscious information, which contain data and/or informationrelevant to that specific ‘feature’ and/or location selected. Saidanother way, specific relevant data can be provided to a user based uponthe ‘feature’ selected, not just based upon a traditional search query.Thus, GDMS 100 links and/or ties a ‘feature,’ and/or specific geographiclocation, to an indexed database of data. Examples of documents that canhave a geospatial associated, but are not amenable to layeredgeo-visualization can include one and/or more components of Products,Goods & Services-Geographic Mapping-Company/Local Information-SocialNetworking (PSR-GM-C/L&SC-SN) information, e.g., but not limited to, adlinks, promotions, online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goods &Services, entertainment shopping, penny auctions or online auctions,advertisements and affiliate advertising or services, productinformation, socially conscious information about companies, theirproducts, goods & services, local cities and/or communities, and/or thelike, e.g., real estate contracts concerning a particular property,title records, covenants, plats, zoning regulations, construction plans,and others. The specific relevant data provided to a user can compriseonly portions and/or sections of documents, maps, and/or images relatedto that specific ‘feature’ selected. This can greatly increaseefficiency of GM and/or GIS by taking a user directly to a relevantsection of a document, which can be hundreds and/or thousands of pagesin length.

The GDMS speeds the process of bringing discordant stakeholder groups toconsensus by providing real-time and highly comprehensible (due to thevisual output) answers to questions offered in meetings and/or anynetworking and/or social networking methods, systems and/or resources.Moreover, the technology introduced in the GDMS yields truly optimalsolutions to highly complex and nonlinear physical problems usingreasonable computational times and resources, including associatingcompany, local and product and/or service information, comprising socialconscious information, data, and other resources. The modular design ofGDMS permits coupling to virtually any simulation code. The GDMS canalso be linked to and implemented within user-friendly andwidely-accepted graphical user interfaces (GUIs) including web browserapplications.

As should be apparent from the above discussion, the GDMS is a powerfultool that can be used to access enormous quantities of data stored atremote locations. When using the GDMS, control access to data stored atremote locations, for example, an access control module 222 as depictedin FIG. 19 can be implemented. An administrator of the data stored atthe remote location to have server-side control over varying levels ofaccess to data. Thus, in some implementations, access control can beexercised on the server-side; however, in other implementations thislevel of access control can be exercised on the client side. Further,access control can also be exercised at/by a given database. It can alsobe desirable to have different levels of authorization to control dataaccess for employees having different roles within an organization. Forexample, a higher level officer, such as a supervisor and/or general,can have unlimited access to classified data, while entry-levelemployees can only have access to non-classified data. These levels ofauthorization can be created and adjusted by an administrator to permitvarying levels of access to the data.

The GDMS can specifically establish different levels of access to thedata can be controlled for each individual and/or can be controlled ingroups (e.g., hierarchically) by the administrator and can be createdand maintained using operations implemented within the access controlmodule 222.

The varying levels of accessibility to data can be controlled using anumber of different methods including, but not limited to,authentication codes and passwords, secure user management tools,firewalls, user authentication, user pathway mapping, and/or encryption.The levels of access control to the data can also be controlled by thecreation of an individual profile for each user identifying the user'srole in the organization and specifying their level of access to thedata. Then, when a user logs onto a system, their level of access todata can be known by the system and the user can then only be able toview and/or access data that was commensurate with their level ofauthorization.

The layers of data can also be saved so that other authorized users andmembers can access the saved layers to view and make additional changesto (or comments on) the layers and then save those additional changes.This allows a given user to open the selected state, make changes,alterations, and comments, and save this new altered state for reviewand potential further modification by others. Certain GDMS view statedata and/or functionality can and/or can not be accessible to and/or beeditable by a user based upon access permissions that have been grantedto and/or withheld from the user.

In one implementation, access to the different map tiles and/or layersof data can be based upon the scale and/or resolution of the map and/orlayer, i.e., access is ‘scale-driven.’ The contextual and/or ‘smart’layers of data can be turned on and/or off by an administrator basedupon the authorization to access each layer of data. A user's ability tochange and/or alter the layers of data can also be dependent upon theirlevel of authorization.

With reference now to FIG. 20, an exemplary GDMS 300 is implemented in aserver system 302 with a DMD 306 as described above. The server system302 can further include additional data servers, for example, a map tileserver 310 indexed by coordinates, reference number, and/or feature; oneand/or more layer servers 312 that provide feature and layer informationalso indexed by reference to geospatial coordinates, tile referencenumber, and/or feature; and a document server 314 that can provideProduct/Service/Retail-Geographic Mapping-Company/LocalInformation-Social Networking (PSR-GM-C/L&SC-SN) information, and/orother documents and information associated with a geospatial location(again indexed by coordinate, reference number, and/or feature) in aformat not amenable to geo-visualization. As shown in FIG. 20, the dataservers 310, 312, 314 can be connected to the DMD 306 and/or to oneanother to maximize operating efficiency of the datastore 306. In someimplementations, the data servers 310, 312, 314 and the datastore 306can be located within the same server system 302, while in otherimplementations, the data servers 310, 312, 314 and the datastore 306can be distributed across a network.

The server system 302 can further comprise a workflow module 316 and anaccess control module 318 through one and/or a number of different typesof software programs (i.e., programming logic and/or computer executableinstructions) utilizing a variety of different types of measures tocontrol access to the DMD 306. The workflow module 316 and the accesscontrol module 318 can be positioned between the client computer 304 andthe DMD 306, as shown in FIG. 20, to provide a layer of access controlbetween the client device 304 and the DMD 306 and/or the data servers310, 312, 314. In other implementations, the access control module 318and workflow module 316 can be partially and/or substantiallyimplemented in other locations, for example, on the client device 304,and/or within the communications network 308.

In one implementation of the GDMS 300, as shown in FIG. 20, the accesscontrol module 318 and workflow module 316 can be separate from the DMD306 and the servers 310, 312, 314. In other implementations, the accesscontrol module 318 and 310, 312, 314. The access control module 318 andworkflow module 316, DMD 306, and data servers 310, 312, 314 are shownas separate components in FIG. 20 for simplicity of illustration, butcan all be combined into one server system 302, system datastore, and/ornetwork.

The access control module 318 and workflow module 316 can be operativelyassociated and can control access to different layers of data via theDMD 306 to facilitate control over what users and members can accessthrough the DMD 306. The access control module 318 and workflow module316 can work in concert to provide a security control function thatgrants and/or denies a user access to map tiles, information, documents,features, applications, resolution, elevation views, aerial extentviews, and/or system access based on the users and membersidentification. This also allows the DMD 306 to provide only theinformation, documents, features, and applications that are authorizedand relevant to a given user, which can provide workflow efficiencies.

By streamlining user workflow, the availability of information andapplications can be assigned by appropriate and relevant scale and/orresolution intervals. In this construct, application icons andinformation layers can appear and disappear based on the scale and/orresolution presented to the user within the system at any given point intime. This streamlines tasks by eliminating those information andapplication choices that are not relevant at a certain scale (and hencerepresent clutter) and by allowing more efficient navigation to theinformation and application choices that remain, i.e., those that arerelevant at a given scale.

The workflow module 316 is a tool, which can also lead users and membersthough data sets by progressively ‘walking’ a user through design stepsusing interactive design tools, which can traverse more than one layerof data. The workflow module 316 can be particularly helpful for noviceusers and members as they attempt to navigate through the vast amountsof data accessible via the DMD 306. In one exemplary implementation, thefeatures and functionality of the workflow module 316 can be turned onand off based upon the scale and/or resolution that a user attempts toaccess. In this embodiment, the workflow module 316 can operate bycorrelating the resolution and/or magnification of the geo-visualizationdata to conform to a user's level of authorization, thus controllingwhich users and members are able to view the most detailed and/or securedata.

The workflow module 316 can allow a system administrator to createwithin the DMD 306 different levels and/or groups of levels of access tothe data for each individual within an organization. In thisimplementation, each individual within an organization can be given anindividual profile. The individual profile can include information suchas their role and/or security clearance within an organization. Theindividual profiles can be stored on a database coupled to, and/orintegral with, the DMD 306. The profiles and/or lists of users andmembers can contain information on the level of information, and/ordata, that each user is permitted to view. This individual profile canbe accessed by the workflow module 316 and/or access control module 318when individuals attempt to access data through the DMD 306 to permitthe individual to have only a pre-determined level of access to data.When individuals attempt to access the DMD 306, their individualidentities can be linked to their profile such that their access to theDMD 306 can be referenced and/or validated before they are permitted toaccess the DMD 306.

The workflow module 316 and access control module 318 can also allowsystem administrator of the DMD 306 to create and edit different levelsof access to data for individuals and/or groups within an organization.For example, in the military, all individuals having equivalent rankand/or security clearance can have the same amount of access to the datawithin the datastore 306. Thus, the limited access is applied uniformlyto the entire group of individuals, such that all of the individuals inthe group have the same level of access to the data. This can bereferred to as ‘hierarchical access control’ because groups and/orindividuals can be grouped together for purposes of determiningserver-side access control levels.

Alternately, in an implementation of the GDMS 300 in an open and/orpublic platform, rather than a system internal to and/or controlled by aparticular organization, access to data can be controlled based merelyupon geospatial attributes, for example, the geospatial location(coordinates) of a tile request, scale of a tile request, resolution ofa tile request, payment for access, the combination of layers requested,and/or freshness and/or staleness of data requested. Another example ofa geospatial attribute can be the ability to download a geospatialdataset as opposed to merely having the ability to view ageo-visualization of such data, e.g., as a layer and/or set of features,e.g., Product, Goods & Services Geographic Mapping-Company/LocalInformation-Social Networking (PSR-GM-C/L&SC-SN) information. A furtherexample of a geospatial attribute can be the ability to save and/orbookmarks geo-visualization states defines by various combinations ofunderlying mar tiles and overlying layers and features for easilyreturning to such states as opposed to having to recreate the samefilter query to return to a prior state. In such a public platform,contributors of GM and/or GIS data accessible for geo-visualization canplace limits and/or restrictions on the availability of and/oraccessibility of the GM and/or GIS data. A public implementation of theworkflow module 316 can be used as an interface for data sources toeither upload data to the DMD 306 and/or otherwise register data withthe DMD 306 so that the DMD 306 can locate and access the data from aremote server and/or data store managed by the data source.

In order to place access restrictions on data, the data source can usethe workflow module 316 to tag and/or otherwise encode an entire datasetand/or portions of the dataset with restriction instructions associatedwith one and/or more geospatial attributes. In one implementation, theworkflow module 316 can provide tools to tag datasets, for example,using extensible mark-up language (XML) to indicate the presence andnature of a restriction tied to a particular map tile, data layer,and/or feature. In an alternate embodiment, a data source can encode adataset itself as long as the tags are in a language and format that theDMD 306 understands.

As depicted in FIG. 20, the access control module 318 can be understoodas composed of a number of functional sub-modules for implementing apublic platform with controlled access to GM and/or GIS data. Suchsub-modules can include, for example, a bounding box restriction module320, a scale determination module 322, a layer comparison module 324, anauthorization module 326, a temporal determination module 328, and apayment processing module 330. Each of these modules can provideseparate functionality, but often can operate in conjunction with eachother to make an access control determination as further describedbelow. It can be desirable to control access to data for a variety ofreasons, for example, to generate revenue for a particular data source.

The bounding box restriction module 320 within the access control module318 can be used to provide a gross initial screening to determinewhether a tile request by a user falls within the range of a boundingbox that is entirely off-limits for presentation without a passwordand/or certificate due to proprietary and/or security concerns. Thebounding box restriction module 320 monitors all tile requests for GMand/or GIS data to determine whether any of the requested tiles fallswithin a restricted bounding box. The bounding box can be alsounderstood as defining a collection of records in a GM and/or GISdatabase that have geospatial coordinate fields associated with the datawith values falling within the range of the bounding box. An additionalfield in the data records can indicate whether there is a restrictionplaced on the data record and the nature of the restriction.

If a requested tile is restricted, then the bounding box restrictionmodule 320 can interface with the DMD 306 and instruct that therequested GM and/or GIS data and/or the tiles thereof that fall withinthe bounding box be withheld from delivery by the DMD 306 to the client304. However, this access restriction can be overridden if the requestorcan provide a valid password and/or certificate as further discussedbelow. The functions provided by the bounding box restriction module 320can be used by the other modules within the access control module 318 inorder to identify the geographic boundaries of a map tile request and/ordata layer.

The scale determination module 322 can be used to control access to databased upon the scale and resolution of the GM and/or GIS data requested.The term “scale” is used herein in the cartographic sense, e.g., 1 cm: 1km (1 cm of the image presented on the screen corresponds to 1 km inreal terms), whereas “resolution” refers to the sharpness of the imagefile available for presentation on the screen (e.g., the number ofpixels and/or dots per inch in a raster image). A large scale, e.g., 1:1generally will correspond to an image of high resolution whereas a smallscale, e.g., 1:100,000 will generally correspond to an image of lowresolution as there is a limited ability of a presentation screen topresent a very high resolution at a small scale—there is physically noroom. In the context of access control, it can be perfectly acceptableto provide map tiles of a particular coordinate area at a scale of 1 cm:100 m at a relatively coarse resolution (e.g., 60 dpi), but it can beunacceptable to provide a larger scale (e.g., 1 cm:1 m) at a highresolution (e.g., 300 dpi), and/or at any resolution at all, e.g.,because that combination of scale and resolution has a premium value andis coded as inaccessible without payment of a fee.

The scale determination module 322 monitors requests for GM and/or GISdata having a scale and/or resolution attribute. If there is a scaleand/or resolution change requested, the scale determination module 322can interface with the DMD 306 and request that the GM and/or GIS databe held for screening by the scale determination module 322 to determinewhether the requested GM and/or GIS data has a scale and/or resolutionrestriction, and/or a combination thereof, and the nature of therestriction.

The layer comparison module 324 can be used to control access to databased upon the types and combinations of data layers of the GM and/orGIS data requested for overlay on a map. For example, it can beperfectly acceptable to provide a geo-visualization of a data layershowing locations of Products, Goods & Services-GeographicMapping-Company/Local Information-Social Networking (PSR-GM-C/L&SC-SN)information. In a further implementation, the layer comparison module324 can be configured to save identifying information of a user making alayer combination request associated with interaction relating to oneand/or more Products, Goods & Services-Geographic Mapping-Company/LocalInformation-Social Networking (PSR-GM-C/L&SC-SN) information.

In each of the examples of geospatial attribute-driven access controlpresented above, it is noted that request denials of map tiles and/ordata layers can be overridden by the provision of a valid certificateand/or password. The authorization module 326 provides an opportunityfor requestors to enter a password, certificate, and/or otheridentification sufficient to overcome a denial of presentation of arequested map region, data layer, and/or feature. In such a case, if arequester enters the appropriate password and/or presents an appropriatecertificate, the authorization module 326 can direct the DMD 306 toaccess and present the requested GM and/or GIS data.

Another exemplary function of the access control module 318 can beembodied in the temporal determination module 328 that allows and/ordenies access to map tiles and/or layers based upon the age of theinformation comprising the particular dataset, e.g. Products, Goods &Services-Geographic Mapping-Company/Local Information-Social Networking(PSR-GM-C/L&SC-SN) information. In an example, data that issignificantly older can develop additional value again for use intemporal studies to identify trends. In such a case, the data can againonly be accessible upon payment of a fee for the service. The temporaldetermination module 328 manages the temporal worth of GM and/or GISdata, for example, by examining time stamps associated with particularGM and/or GIS datasets and comparing the timestamps to any tags that canbe encoded with the data indicating that the GM and/or GIS dataset issubject to a fee for service within particular ranges of age.

A further exemplary function of the access control module 318 can be theacceptance of payment for access to GM and/or GIS datasets through thepayment processing module 330. Upon receipt of a request for a GM and/orGIS dataset, the payment processing module 330 can query the relevantdatastore to determine whether the dataset is subject to a fee forservice, for example membership, registration, and/or subscription forwebsite access for providing coupons and/or discounts and associatedcompany, local information, including socially conscious information,such as Product, Goods & Services-Geographic Mapping-Company/LocalInformation-Social Networking (PSR-GM-C/L&SC-SN) information. If so, thepayment processing module 330 can instruct the DMD 306 to withholddelivery of a dataset to a requestor until payment is made. In analternate implementation, the payment processing module 330 can maintaina schedule of fees charged by each contributor for particular datasetsand compare incoming dataset requests with the schedule to determinewhether a fee is required to access the data and instruct the DMD 306accordingly. In another implementation, upon payment of a fee for accessto a restricted dataset, the payment processing module 330 can issue apassword and/or certification to the requester who would then presentthe password/certificate to the authorization module 326 to seek accessto the dataset through that component. The payment processing module 330can actually accept and process access payments from requesters, and/orit can interface with a third party payment processing service (e.g.,PayPal®) to actually process fund transfers.

FIG. 21 depicts an exemplary set of access control operations 400 thatcan be performed according to one implementation of an access controlmodule within a GDMS. Initially the access control module receives atile request in a receiving operation 402 associated with one and/ormore Products, Goods & Services-Geographic Mapping-Company/LocalInformation-Social Networking (PSR-GM-C/L&SC-SN) information. It shouldbe understood that any request from a client device for GM and/or GISdata, e.g., Products, Goods & Services—Geographic Mapping-Company/LocalInformation-Social Networking (PSR-GM-C/L&SC-SN) information be it aparticular map and/or a dataset for a layer and/or a feature and/or evena document, will necessarily be associated with one and/or more maptiles. In order to present a geo-visualization interface, all of thedata can have a reference to particular geospatial coordinates, whichcan optionally broken down in units of map tiles.

Once a tile request is received, the access control module can nextidentify a bounding box containing all the tiles in the tile request inidentification operation 404. Creation of a bounding box allows theaccess control module to easily determine whether access is restrictedto presentation of any of the map tiles requested. In a comparisonoperation 406, the access control module can simply compare whether anyof the entire region of the bounding box intersects with a geospatialattribute that can be subject to a presentation restriction. Recall thatthere can be any number of geospatial attributes that can be designatedas having restriction requirements, for example, the geospatial location(coordinates) of a tile request itself, the scale of the tile request,resolution of a tile request, an angle of view (e.g., plan, aerial,street level, etc.), payment for access, the combination of layersrequested, and/or the freshness and/or staleness of data requested. Ifthere are no geospatial attribute restrictions associated with any ofthe tiles in the bounding box, the process 400 can approve all of thetiles and instruct the DMD to send the particular map tiles, layerdataset, features, and/or other information in sending operation 408.

If the access control module recognizes that there is a restrictionassociated with one and/or more of the tiles in the bounding box, theaccess control module can next determine what kind of geospatialattribute is implicated in the bounding box restriction in checkingoperation 410. The access control module can then invoke one and/or moreof the sub-modules described above for further processing assistance.The appropriate sub-module(s) can first determine whether an actualrestriction must be imposed on the data request pursuant to thegeospatial attribute in determination operation 412. This operationdetermines whether the requested a value of the geospatial datasetand/or feature actually conflicts with the restriction set by the datacontributor. For example, the tile request at a resolution valuerestricted by the data contributor without additional authorizationand/or payment and the tile would be considered actually restricted.Alternatively, if the tile request is at a resolution value within theallowable bounds set by the contributor, then the attribute of therequest would not be considered restricted and the tiles and/orassociated data would be approved for presentation in sending operation408.

If the geospatial attribute associated with the tile request is found tobe “set high,” then the access control module will request that someform of authentication be presented by the requester before the data arereleased for presentation in requesting operation 414. Responses to therequesting operation are then examined in determination operation 416 todetermine what information should be provided relating to Products,Goods & Services-Geographic Mapping-Company/Local Information-SocialNetworking (PSR-GM-C/L&SC-SN) information. Similarly, if the GM and/orGIS dataset is a premium service requiring additional payment, uponpayment by the requester the access control module can approve therequest and the tile are sent in sending operation 408. If a requestercannot provide the appropriate password and/or certification, and/orchooses not to pay for a premium service, then the access controllerwill deny the tile request in denying operation 418. The GDMS can eitherinform the requester that the request has been denied and/oralternatively return a GM and/or GIS data set as responsive as possibleto the request, but without providing the restricted information.

Some implementations described herein can be implemented as logicalsteps in one and/or more computer systems. The logical operations of thedescribed systems, apparatus, and methods are implemented (1) as asequence of processor-implemented steps executing in one and/or morecomputer systems and (2) as interconnected machine modules within oneand/or more computer systems. The implementation is a matter of choice,dependent on the performance requirements of the computer systemimplementing the described system, apparatus, and method. Accordingly,the logical operations making up the implementations of the systems,apparatus, and methods described herein are referred to variously asoperations, steps, objects, and/or modules.

In some implementations, articles of manufacture are provided ascomputer program products that cause the instantiation of operations ona computer system to implement the invention. One implementation of acomputer program product provides a computer program storage mediumreadable by a computer system and encoding a computer program. Anotherimplementation of a computer program product can be provided in acomputer data signal embodied in a carrier wave by a computing systemand encoding the computer program.

An exemplary computer system 500 for implementing the file origindetermination processes above is depicted in FIG. 22. The computersystem 500 can be a computer server with internal processing and memorycomponents as well as interface components for connection with externalinput, output, storage, network, and other types of peripheral devices.Internal components of the computer system in FIG. 22 are shown withinthe dashed line and external components are shown outside of the dashedline. Components that can be internal and/or external are shownstraddling the dashed line. Alternatively to a server, the computersystem 500 can be in the form of any of a personal computer (PC), anotebook and/or portable computer, a tablet PC, a handheld media player(e.g., an MP3 player), a smart phone device, a video gaming device, aset top box, a workstation, a mainframe computer, a distributedcomputer, an Internet appliance, and/or other computer devices, and/orcombinations thereof.

The computer system 500 includes a processor 502 and a system memory 506connected by a system bus 504 that also operatively couples varioussystem components. There can be one and/or more processors 502, e.g., asingle central processing unit (CPU), and/or a plurality of processingunits, commonly referred to as a parallel processing environment. Thesystem bus 504 can be any of several types of bus structures including amemory bus and/or memory controller, a peripheral bus, aswitched-fabric, point-to-point connection, and a local bus using any ofa variety of bus architectures. The system memory 506 includes read onlymemory (ROM) 508 and random access memory (RAM) 510. A basicinput/output system (BIOS) 512, containing the basic routines that helpto transfer information between elements within the computer system 500,such as during start-up, is stored in ROM 508. A cache 514 can be setaside in RAM 510 to provide a high speed memory store for frequentlyaccessed data.

A hard disk drive interface 516 can be connected with the system bus 504to provide read and write access to a data storage device, e.g., a harddisk drive 518, for nonvolatile storage of applications, files, anddata. A number of program modules and other data can be stored on thehard disk 518, including an operating system 520, one and/or moreapplication programs 522, other program modules 524, and data files 526.In an exemplary implementation, the hard disk drive 518 can furtherstore access control module 564 for restricting access to map and datafiles and the decision management datastore 566 for housing and managingGM and/or GIS databases according to the exemplary processes describedherein above. Note that the hard disk drive 518 can be either aninternal component and/or an external component of the computer system500 as indicated by the hard disk drive 518 straddling the dashed linein FIG. 25. In some configurations, there can be both an internal and anexternal hard disk drive 518.

The computer system 500 can further include a magnetic disk drive 530for reading from and/or writing to a removable magnetic disk 532, tape,and/or other magnetic media. The magnetic disk drive 530 can beconnected with the system bus 504 via a magnetic drive interface 528 toprovide read and write access to the magnetic disk drive 530 initiatedby other components and/or applications within the computer system 500.The magnetic disk drive 530 and the associated computer-readable mediacan be used to provide nonvolatile storage of computer-readableinstructions, data structures, program modules, and other data for thecomputer system 500.

The computer system 500 can additionally include an optical disk drive536 for reading from and/or writing to a removable optical disk 538 suchas a CD ROM and/or other optical media. The optical disk drive 536 canbe connected with the system bus 504 via an optical drive interface 534to provide read and write access to the optical disk drive 536 initiatedby other components and/or applications within the computer system 500.The optical disk drive 530 and the associated computer-readable opticalmedia can be used to provide nonvolatile storage of computer-readableinstructions, data structures, program modules, and other data for thecomputer system 500.

A display device 542, e.g., a monitor, a television, and/or a projector,and/or other type of presentation device can also be connected to thesystem bus 504 via an interface, such as a video adapter 540 and/orvideo card. Similarly, audio devices, for example, external speakersand/or a microphone (not shown), can be connected to the system bus 504through an audio card and/or other audio interface (not shown).

In addition to the monitor 542, the computer system 500 can includeother peripheral input and output devices, which are often connected tothe processor 502 and memory 506 through the serial port interface 544that is coupled to the system bus 506. Input and output devices can alsoand/or alternately be connected with the system bus 504 by otherinterfaces, for example, a universal serial bus (USB), a parallel port,and/or a game port. A user can enter commands and information into thecomputer system 500 through various input devices including, forexample, a keyboard 546 and pointing device 548, for example, a mouse.Other input devices (not shown) can include, for example, a microphone,a joystick, a game pad, a tablet, a touch screen device, a satellitedish, a scanner, a facsimile machine, and a digital camera, and adigital video camera. Other output devices can include, for example, aprinter 550, a plotter, a photocopier, a photo printer, a facsimilemachine, and a press (the latter not shown). In some implementations,several of these input and output devices can be combined into a singledevice, for example, a printer/scanner/fax/photocopier. It should alsobe appreciated that other types of computer-readable media andassociated drives for storing data, for example, magnetic cassettesand/or flash memory drives, can be accessed by the computer system 500via the serial port interface 544 (e.g., USB) and/or similar portinterface.

The computer system 500 can operate in a networked environment usinglogical connections through a network interface 552 coupled with thesystem bus 504 to communicate with one and/or more remote devices. Thelogical connections depicted in FIG. 22 include a local-area network(LAN) 554 and a wide-area network (WAN) 560. Such networkingenvironments are commonplace in home networks, office networks,enterprise-wide computer networks, and intranets. These logicalconnections can be achieved by a communication device coupled to and/orintegral with the computer system 500. As depicted in FIG. 22, the LAN554 can use a router 556 and/or hub, either wired and/or wireless,internal and/or external, to connect with remote devices, e.g., a remotecomputer 558, similarly connected on the LAN 554. The remote computer558 can be a PC client, a server, a peer device, and/or other commonnetwork node, and typically includes many and/or all of the elementsdescribed above relative to the computer system 500.

To connect with a WAN 560, the computer system 500 typically includes amodem 562 for establishing communications over the WAN 560. Typicallythe WAN 560 can be the Internet. However, in some instances the WAN 560can be a large private network spread among multiple locations. Themodem 562 can be a telephone modem, a high speed modem (e.g., a digitalsubscriber line (DSL) modem), a cable modem, and/or similar type ofcommunications device. The modem 562, which can be internal and/orexternal, is connected to the system bus 518 via the network interface552. In alternate embodiments the modem 562 can be connected via theserial port interface 544. It should be appreciated that the networkconnections shown are exemplary and other means of and communicationsdevices for establishing a communications link between the computersystem and other devices and/or networks can be used. Connection of thecomputer system 500 with a WAN 560 allows the decision managementdatastore 566 the ability to access remote GM and/or GIS datastores toprovide for a distributed GM and/or GIS platform.

All directional references (e.g., proximal, distal, upper, lower,upward, downward, left, right, lateral, front, back, top, bottom, above,below, vertical, horizontal, clockwise, and counterclockwise) are onlyused for identification purposes to aid the readers understanding of thepresent invention, and do not create limitations, particularly as to theposition, orientation, and/or use of the invention. Connectionreferences (e.g., attached, coupled, connected, and joined) are to beconstrued broadly and can include intermediate members between acollection of elements and relative movement between elements unlessotherwise indicated. As such, connection references do not necessarilyinfer that two elements are directly connected and in fixed relation toeach other. The exemplary drawings are for purposes of illustration onlyand the dimensions, positions, order and relative sizes reflected in thedrawings attached hereto can vary.

As presented in FIG. 23, The present invention provides in one aspect adelivery system for a geospatial website for a multidimensionalrepresentation of information and/or scalable versions of web and mobiledevice content for an infrastructure and global platform that providesusers and members and businesses of all types and sizes with access tobroad markets for the delivery of ad links, promotions, online coupons,mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping,penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliateadvertising or services from merchants and sellers from around the worldfor such items as: e-commerce, media and entertainment, sports, personal& financial network, travel & hospitality services, real estate,educational services, ancillary services, advertisers, serviceproviders, social networking, online dating, gaming, retail stores,virtual communities and virtual goods end user's online activity,location, online communications, search inquiries, social networking,social networking communities, social plugins, ad links, promotions,social applications, entertainment shopping, bidding, bidding behavior,bidding results, advertisements, purchasing, behavior, buying patternsand other criteria for collection and analysis used to providecustomized promotional website displays of ad links, promotions, onlinecoupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainmentshopping, penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements andaffiliate advertising or services from merchants and sellers from aroundthe world, service providers and related company and local informationusing three-dimensional and scalable geospatial mapping. (collectivelyreferred to as “Products, Goods & Services” as any product or service orsubgroup thereof) through combined Products, Goods and Service withGeospatial Mapping/Company-Local Information/SocialNetworking/Communities (“PGS-GM-CL/I-SN”) on a three dimensionalgeospatial platform using geospatial mapping technology.

FIG. 24 presents a flow chart showing a typical transaction for thepurchase a Social Earth online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goodsand Service, entertainment shopping, penny auctions or online auctions,advertisements and affiliate advertising or services from merchants andsellers from around the world that provides a portion of the saleproceeds will be allocated to microloans or microcredit, humanitarianaid and support other worldly causes through charitable donations. “ViewSocial Earth ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobile services,Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, penny auctions oronline auctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising or servicesfrom merchants and sellers from around the world, retail stores, virtualcommunities and virtual goods and information about microloans ormicrocredit, humanitarian aid and support other worldly causes throughcharitable donations from around the world by geo-target location oranywhere in the world on the present inventions unique Live View of theplanet.”

Techniques, methods, apparatus, and a system for presenting sponsoredcontent (e.g., ad links, promotions and advertising) are described. Insome implementations, the techniques, methods, apparatus and system canbe used to facilitate online advertising, being advertising occurringover a network including one or more local area networks (LANs) or awide area network (WAN), for example, the Internet. Any reference hereinto “online promotion” is meant to include any such advertising occurringover a network and is not limited to advertising over the Internet.Further, the techniques and system described can be used to distributeother forms of sponsored content over other distribution media (e.g.,not online), including those over broadcast, wireless, radio or otherdistribution networks. By way of example, the techniques and system arediscussed in an online advertising context, but other contexts arepossible. For example other forms of content can be delivered other thanadvertisements.

FIG. 25 is a block diagram of an example online advertising system 100.In some implementations, one or more advertisers 104 can directly, orindirectly, enter, maintain, and track advertisement (“ad”) informationin an ad management system 108. The ads can be stored in a repository114 coupled to the system 108 (e.g., a MySQL® database). The ads may bein the form of graphical ads, such as banner ads, text only ads, imageads, audio ads, video ads, ads combining one of more of any of suchcomponents, etc. The ads may also include embedded information, such asembedded media, links, meta-information, and/or machine executableinstructions. One or more publishers 106 may submit requests for ads orsocial/geo/promo link promotional data sets to the system 108. Thesystem 108 responds by sending ads, social/geo/promo link promotionaldata sets, or information that will allow for the retrieval of ads orsocial/geo/promo link promotional data sets to the requesting publisher106 for placement/serving on one or more of the publisher's webproperties (e.g., websites and other network-distributed content). Theads or social/geo/promo link promotional data sets can be placed with orembedded in the publisher's content (e.g., videos, articles, searchresults), which can be stored in a repository 110 at the publisher 106,and/or placed with content received from other sources (e.g., otherpublishers, advertisers).

In some implementations, publisher's properties available in this systemmay also include both Internet-distributed and broadcast distributedcontent such as, but not limited to, television spots, radio spots,print advertising, billboard advertising (electronic or printed),on-vehicle advertising, and the like.

Other entities, such as users 102 and advertisers 104, can provide usageinformation to the system 108, such as, for example, whether or not aconversion or click-through related to an ad has occurred. In someimplementations, conversion data can be stored in a repository 112,where it can be used by the system 108 to improve ad targetingperformance. The usage information provided to the system 108 caninclude measured or observed user behavior related to ads that have beenserved. In some implementations, the system 108 performs financialtransactions, such as crediting the publishers 106 and charging theadvertisers 104 based on the usage information.

A computer network, such as a local area network (LAN), wide areanetwork (WAN), the Internet, wireless network or a combination thereof,can connect the advertisers 104, the system 108, the publishers 106, andthe users 102.

One example of a publisher 106 is a general content server that receivesrequests for content (e.g., articles, electronic mail messages,discussion threads, music, video, graphics, networked games, searchresults, web page listings, information feeds, dynamic web page content,etc.), and retrieves the requested content in response to the request.The content server may submit a request (either directly or indirectly)for ads or social/geo/promo link promotional data sets to an ad serverin the system 108. The ad request may include a number of ads desired.The social/geo/promo link promotional data set request may include anumber of social/geo/promo link promotional data sets desired and thenumber of social/geo/promo links per social/geo/promo link promotionaldata set. The ad or social/geo/promo link promotional data set requestmay also include content request information. This information caninclude the content itself (e.g., page or other content document), acategory or keyword corresponding to the content or the content request(e.g., arts, business, computers, arts-movies, arts-music, etc.), partor all of the content request, content age, content type (e.g., text,graphics, video, audio, mixed media, etc.), geo-location information,demographic information related to the content, keyword, web property,etc., and the like.

In some implementations, the content server (or a browser renderingcontent provided by the content server) can combine the requestedcontent with one or more of the ads or social/geo/promo link promotionaldata sets provided by the system 108. The combination can happen priorto delivery of the content to the user or contemporaneously where theadvertising server can serve the ads or social/geo/promo linkpromotional data sets directly to an end user. The combined content andads or social/geo/promo link promotional data sets can be delivered tothe user 102 that requested the content for presentation in a viewer(e.g., a browser or other content display system). The content servercan transmit information about the ads or social/geo/promo linkpromotional data sets back to the ad server, including informationdescribing how, when, and/or where the ads or social/geo/promo linkpromotional data sets are to be rendered (e.g., in HTML or JavaScript™).The content page 120 can be rendered in the user's viewer with one ormore ads 122. When the user 102 clicks on a displayed ad 122 of anadvertiser, the user 102 can be redirected to a landing page 118 of theadvertiser's web site.

In another example, the publisher 106 is a search service. A searchservice can receive queries for search results. In response, the searchservice can retrieve relevant search results from an index of content(e.g., from an index of web pages). An exemplary search service isdescribed in the article S. Brin and L. Page, “The Anatomy of aLarge-Scale Hypertextual Search Engine,” Seventh International WorldWide Web Conference, Brisbane, Australia and in U.S. Pat. No. 6,285,999,both of which are incorporated herein by reference each in theirentirety. Search results can include, for example, lists of web pagetitles, snippets of text extracted from those web pages, and hypertextlinks to those web pages, and may be grouped into a predetermined numberof search results (e.g., ten).

The search service can submit a request for ads or social/geo/promo linkpromotional data sets to the system 108. The request may include anumber of ads or social/geo/promo link promotional data sets desired. Asocial/geo/promo link promotional data set request may include a numberof social/geo/promo link promotional data sets desired and the number ofsocial/geo/promo links per social/geo/promo link promotional data set.The number of ads or number of social/geo/promo link promotional datasets may depend on the search results, the amount of screen or pagespace occupied by the search results or other content to be displayedcontemporaneously with the sponsored content, the size and shape of theads, etc. In some implementations, the number of desired ads can be fromone to ten, or from three to five. In some implementations, the numberof desired social/geo/promo link promotional data sets can be greaterthan one (e.g., three). The request for ads or social/geo/promo linkpromotional data sets may also include a query (as entered or parsed),information based on the query (such as geo-location information,whether the query came from an affiliate and an identifier of such anaffiliate), and/or information associated with, or based on, the searchresults. Such information may include, for example, identifiers relatedto the search results (e.g., document identifiers or “docIDs”), scoresrelated to the search results (e.g., information retrieval (“IR”)scores), snippets of text extracted from identified documents (e.g., webpages), full text of identified documents, feature vectors of identifieddocuments, etc. Other information can be included in the requestincluding information related to the content that is to be displayedcontemporaneously with the sponsored content. In some implementations,IR scores can be computed from, for example, dot products of featurevectors corresponding to a query and a document, page rank scores,and/or combinations of IR scores and page rank scores, etc.

A search service can combine the search results with one or more of theads or social/geo/promo link promotional data sets provided by thesystem 108. This combined information can then be forwarded/delivered tothe user 102 that requested the content. The search results can bemaintained as distinct from the ads or social/geo/promo link promotionaldata sets, so as not to confuse the user between paid advertisements andpresumably neutral search results. The search service can transmitinformation about the ad or social/geo/promo link promotional data setand when, where, and/or how the ad or social/geo/promo link promotionaldata set was to be rendered back to the system 104.

As can be appreciated from the foregoing, the advertising managementsystem 108 can serve publishers 106, such as content servers and searchservices. The system 108 permits serving of ads targeted to content(e.g., documents, web pages, web blogs, etc.) served by content servers.For example, a network or inter-network may include an ad server servingtargeted ads in response to requests from a search service with ad spotsfor sale. Suppose that the inter-network is the World Wide Web. Thesearch service can be configured to crawl much or all of the content.Some of this content will include ad spots (also referred to as“inventory”) available. In this example, one or more content servers mayinclude one or more documents. Documents may include web pages, email,content, embedded information (e.g., embedded media), meta-informationand machine executable instructions, and ad spots available. The adsinserted into ad spots in a document can vary each time the document isserved or, alternatively, can have a static association with a givendocument.

In one implementation, for the system 104 to provide advertisements tothe publisher that are targeted to the user 108 upon whose browser theadvertisements will be displayed, it is advantageous for user profileinformation about the user 108 to be provided to the system 104. In someimplementations, user profile information and other types of data can becollected by the system 108 and stored in a repository 116. The storeddata may include, for example, geographic locations of users, ad contextinformation, etc. The system can then select the advertisements toprovide for viewing by the user 108 based at least in part on the userprofile information.

FIG. 26A illustrates an example 200 of a related social/geo/promo linkpromotional data set 202 provided with web page content. In example 200,the content of the web page is directed to the latest in luggagetechnology. The content of the web page is displayed with related adsand the related social/geo/promo link promotional data set 202.

The related social/geo/promo link promotional data set 202 includes alist of selectable topics or categories 204 related to the content ofthe web page. The related social/geo/promo link promotional data set 202can present multiple (e.g., four) social/geo/promo links. In someimplementations, the related social/geo/promo link promotional data set202 also includes a label (e.g., “Ads by Google”) identifying the linkunit 202 as advertisement.

Example 200 includes one related social/geo/promo link promotional dataset 202 for the web page. The related social/geo/promo link promotionaldata set includes the following selectable categories 204: luggage,baggage, suitcase, and valise. These categories 204 are related to thecontent of the web page. However, the categories 204 in the list arevery similar to one another. In particular, these categories 204 aresynonyms of each other. A user presented with the luggage technology webpage content and the related social/geo/promo link promotional data set202 is likely to find little variety in the listed categories 204. Ifthe user decides to select any category, the user is likely to selectthe first category, (e.g., luggage) and ignore the other threecategories because of their high correlation to the first category.

Despite the correlation in the categories 204, the list of ads presentedwhen one category is selected may differ from the list of ads presentedwhen another category is selected. The ads associated with the similarcategories that are lower on the related social/geo/promo linkpromotional data set list are at a disadvantage relative to the adsassociated with the first category in the list.

FIG. 26B illustrates an example 250 of multiple related social/geo/promolink promotional data sets 252, 262 provided with web page content. Aswith example 200 of FIG. 2A, the content of the web page is directed tothe latest in luggage technology.

Example 250 includes two related social/geo/promo link promotional datasets 252, 262 for the web page. The related social/geo/promo linkpromotional data set 252 includes the following selectable categories254: luggage, vacation getaways, travel agencies, and valise. Therelated social/geo/promo link promotional data set 262 includes thefollowing selectable categories 264: vacation packages, luggage locks,baggage, and tour packages. The categories 254, 264 are related to thecontent of the web page. However, the categories are scattered acrossthe two related social/geo/promo link promotional data sets 252, 262without regard to the correlation or diversity of the categories. Forexample, the luggage category of related social/geo/promo linkpromotional data set 252 is a synonym of the baggage category of relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set 262. The vacation getawayscategory of related social/geo/promo link promotional data set 252 is asynonym of the vacation packages category of related social/geo/promolink promotional data set 262. Additionally, the categories within eachlink unit are diverse. For example, vacation packages and luggage locksare disparate categories in the related social/geo/promo linkpromotional data set 262. If the categories are incoherently assembledin multiple related social/geo/promo link promotional data sets withoutconsidering correlation or diversity, a user may have difficulty findinga particular category of interest.

A technique, method, apparatus, and system are described to providerelated social/geo/promo link promotional data sets with correlatedbroad or alternative categories to be displayed with web page contentfor view by a user. The determination whether to cluster or anti-clustercan be based on, for example, the number of related social/geo/promolink promotional data sets to be displayed with web page content.Clustering and alternative category clustering can be relative to acategory classification of the related social/geo/promo link categories.Categories can represent industries or broad topics at a high level of ataxonomy system, which includes concepts, themes, or characteristics.Some examples of categories are travel, entertainment, office supplies,and education. Related social/geo/promo link categories can be orderedin this hierarchy of categories. In other words, relatedsocial/geo/promo link categories can be classified according to one ormore categories. For example, “Hawaiian travel” can be categorized underboth a Hawaii category and a travel category. The relatedsocial/geo/promo link category “luggage” can fall into a category forcontainers for travel.

FIG. 27 illustrates an example implementation 300 of a relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set 302 with correlated broadcategories 304 provided with web page content. As with the example 200of FIG. 2A, the content of the web page is directed to the latest inluggage technology. However, in the example implementation 300, thelisted categories 304 are not limited to the containers for travelcategory, and the listed categories 304 are not synonyms of each other.Instead, the related social/geo/promo link promotional data set 302provides varied categories 304 (e.g., luggage, purses, briefcases, andbackpacks) which are related to the content of the web page. The variedcategories 304 fall into a number of categories including, for example,accessories, office supplies, and education supplies. The categories 304are clustered broad categories to provide a diversity of promotionaltopics for the user. The technique of alternative category clustering isdescribed in more detail below. User experience can be improved bypresenting the varied categories 304 within the single relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set 302, allowing the user tobetter distinguish between available promotional topics.

FIG. 27B illustrates an example implementation 350 of multiple relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data sets 352, 362 with clusteredcategories 354, 364 provided with web page content. The link unit 352includes the following selectable categories 354: luggage, overnightbag, cosmetic case, and toiletry bag. The link unit 362 includes thefollowing selectable categories 364: vacation packages, cruises, cyclingtours, and student hostel trips. The categories 354, 364 are related tothe content of the web page and are assembled such that the categoriesin one related social/geo/promo link promotional data set are chosenfrom the same, similar, categories, while the categories in the otherrelated social/geo/promo link promotional data set are chosen from thesame or similar alternative categories. That is, the categories 354 ofrelated social/geo/promo link promotional data set 352 are allcontainers for travel while the categories 364 of relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set 362 are all types of travel.Assembling related social/geo/promo link categories in multiple relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data sets by similar or diversecategories brings coherency to the presentation of the relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data sets, allowing a user to betterdistinguish between available promotional topics and to more easily finda particular category of interest.

FIG. 28 is a block diagram of an example implementation 400 of anadvertising management system 108 of FIG. 25 that provides relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data sets with correlated broad andalternative categories. The advertising management system 108 includes asocial/geo/promo link server 402, a social/geo/promo link repository404, and a learning module 406. In some implementations, the system 108also includes a concept extraction engine 408. In some implementations,the ad server in system 108 also serves related social/geo/promo links.

The social/geo/promo link server 402 receives requests for relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data sets. In some implementations,the social/geo/promo link server 402 receives related social/geo/promolink promotional data set requests from one or more content servers. Asocial/geo/promo link promotional data set request can accompany an adrequest, where both the ad and social/geo/promo link promotional dataset are to be displayed with the same content. In some implementations,a content server sends a combined request for both ads andsocial/geo/promo link promotional data sets. The relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set request may include a number(e.g., one, two, or three) of related social/geo/promo link promotionaldata sets desired and the number (e.g., four or five) of relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set categories for each relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set. The related social/geo/promolink promotional data set request may also include content requestinformation. For example, the information can include the content itselfor one or more categories or keywords corresponding to the content orthe content request.

The social/geo/promo link server 402 receives candidate relatedsocial/geo/promo links from a social/geo/promo link repository 404. Insome implementations, the candidate related social/geo/promo links aredetermined based on keywords corresponding to the requested content withwhich the related social/geo/promo link promotional data set is to bedisplayed. Other matching techniques can be used.

The social/geo/promo link server 402 identifies categories for thecandidate related social/geo/promo links and forwards the categories toa learning module 406. In some implementations, the categories are thesame as the candidate related social/geo/promo links. In someimplementations, the candidate related social/geo/promo links are asubset of the categories that can be selected for social/geo/promo linkpromotional data sets displayed with requested content.

In some implementations, the related social/geo/promo link promotionaldata set request can include an identifier (e.g., the Uniform ResourceLocator (URL)) of the webpage with the requested content with which therelated social/geo/promo link promotional data set is to be displayed.Using the identifier, the web page can be crawled to determine one ormore concepts evoked by the content of the web page. An optional conceptextraction engine 408 can extract concepts from the web page content.The web page concepts can be forwarded to the learning module 406. Someexamples of concept extraction engines are described in U.S. Pat. No.7,231,393 and U.S. 2004/0068697, each of which is incorporated byreference herein in its entirety.

The learning module 406 receives related social/geo/promo linkcategories from the social/geo/promo link server 402. The learningmodule 406 generates or retrieves one or more category identifiersassociated with each related social/geo/promo link category. Asdescribed above, each related social/geo/promo link category can beclassified under one or more categories. In some implementations, thecategory identifiers are predetermined. For example, the categoryidentifiers for the related social/geo/promo link categories can bedetermined before a related social/geo/promo link promotional data setrequest is served. In some implementations, the category identifiers arepre-computed for the keywords for ads in the social/geo/promo linkrepository 404.

In some implementations, the learning module 406 also receives web pageconcepts from the concept extraction engine 408. Web page concepts canalso be classified under one or more categories. Category identifiersfor the web page concepts can be determined when a relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set request is received.

The learning module 406 computes one or more correlation criteria foreach related social/geo/promo link category. A correlation measureprovides a measure of how “close” or “distant” in correlation twocategory identifiers are, where the pair of category identifierscorresponds to two related social/geo/promo link categories. If categoryidentifiers are determined for the web page concepts, correlationcriteria can also be computed between a category identifier associatedwith a related social/geo/promo link category and a category identifierassociated with one of the web page concepts.

In some implementations, the correlation measure can be computed usingstatistics accumulated over a large set of documents (e.g., web pages).For example, the number of instances of a document evoking two categoryconcepts can be determined. The number of instances can be used as aheuristic to measure the correlation between the two categories. Thatis, the larger the number of instances, the more likely the twocategories are similar. Techniques for associating documents andco-occurring category concepts are described in U.S. Patent PublicationNo. 2006/0242013 A1, filed Oct. 26, 2006, for “Suggesting TargetingInformation for Ads, Such as Websites and/or Categories of Websites forExample,” Attorney Docket No. GP-497-00-US, which published patentapplication is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. Thecorrelation measure is further discussed below.

The social/geo/promo link server 402 receives from the learning module406 one or more correlation criteria for each related social/geo/promolink category. In some implementations, the social/geo/promo link server402 also receives the category identifiers from the learning module 406.The social/geo/promo link server 402 generates the same, similar, broador alternative, social/geo/promo link categories based on thecorrelation criteria of the candidate social/geo/promo link categories.The same, similar, broad or alternative, social/geo/promo linkcategories are organized into one or more related social/geo/promo linkpromotional data sets which can be provided by the system 108 to thecontent server to be combined with the requested content.

In some implementations, the social/geo/promo link server 402 providesthe functionality of the learning module 406, including generation orretrieval of the category identifiers and the correlation criteria. Inthese implementations, the learning module 406 is not part of system108.

FIG. 29 is a block diagram of an example implementation 500 of thesocial/geo/promo link server 402 of FIG. 4. The social/geo/promo linkserver 402 includes a categorizer 502 and a cluster/anti-cluster module504.

The social/geo/promo link server 402 receives requests for relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data sets. The relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set request may include a numberof related social/geo/promo link promotional data sets desired and thenumber of related social/geo/promo link categories per relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set. The number of relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data sets desired can be used todetermine whether related social/geo/promo link categories should besame, similar, broad or alternative, clusters or groupings.

The social/geo/promo link server 402 receives candidate relatedsocial/geo/promo links. In some implementations, the candidate relatedsocial/geo/promo links are ordered by relevance to the requestedcontent. The social/geo/promo link server 402 can receive the orderedlist of candidate social/geo/promo links. Alternatively, thesocial/geo/promo link server 402 can receive an unordered list, and thesocial/geo/promo link server 402 can order the candidatesocial/geo/promo links by relevance to the requested content using arelevance measure.

The categorizer 502 of the social/geo/promo link server 402 identifiescategories for the candidate related social/geo/promo links. In someimplementations, the categories are the same as the relatedsocial/geo/promo links, and the categorizer 502 is not included in thesocial/geo/promo link server 402.

The social/geo/promo link server 402 receives one or more correlationcriteria for each category. In some implementations, thesocial/geo/promo link server 402 also receives the one or more categoryidentifiers associated with each category. In some implementations,category identifiers are also received for the web page concepts and areused to cluster or anti-cluster social/geo/promo link categories.

The candidate social/geo/promo links and the correlation criteria areprovided as inputs to the cluster/anti-cluster module 504. If therequest is for a single related social/geo/promo link promotional dataset, the classification of the categories by characteristics (alsocalled categories) is used to improve the diversity of categoriescoverage (alternative category clustering) of the relatedsocial/geo/promo link categories displayed in the single relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set. If the request is formultiple related social/geo/promo link promotional data sets, theclassification of the related social/geo/promo link categories bycategories is used to cluster related social/geo/promo link categoriesin one related social/geo/promo link promotional data set in the samecategory or similar categories while those in other relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data sets are from differentcategories.

FIG. 30 is a flow diagram of an example process 600 for providing arelated social/geo/promo link promotional data set with anti-clusteredcategories. The process 600 begins by selecting a first social/geo/promolink category for a first position of the social/geo/promo linkpromotional data set, where the first social/geo/promo link category isin a set of candidate social/geo/promo link categories (602). In someimplementations, the set of candidate social/geo/promo link categoriesis ordered according to the relevance of the social/geo/promo linkcategories to the requested content of the web page with which therelated social/geo/promo link promotional data set is to be displayed.For an ordered set of candidate social/geo/promo link categories, thetop relevance scoring social/geo/promo link category is selected for thefirst position of the social/geo/promo link promotional data set. Insome implementations, selected social/geo/promo link categories areremoved from the set of candidate social/geo/promo link categories.

As an example, the set of candidate social/geo/promo link categories canbe ordered by relevance to the requested content of a web page. For aset with the following order: A, B, C, D, . . . , L, category A can bechosen as the most relevant social/geo/promo link category for the firstposition of the social/geo/promo link promotional data set.

The process 600 determines whether there is at least one empty (e.g.,unfilled) position remaining in the related social/geo/promo linkpromotional data set (604). In some implementations, the link unitrequest can include the number of social/geo/promo link categoriesdesired for the related social/geo/promo link promotional data set. Ifthere are a predetermined number (e.g., zero) of empty positionsremaining in the related social/geo/promo link promotional data set, theprocess 600 ends (612). Generally, a related social/geo/promo linkpromotional data set is displayed with multiple social/geo/promo linkcategories.

If there is at least one empty position remaining in the relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set, social/geo/promo linkcategories having a correlation measure that is less than a correlationthreshold are identified, where the identified social/geo/promo linkcategories have one or more correlation criteria associated with themost recently selected social/geo/promo link category (606). Theidentified social/geo/promo link categories are in the set of candidatesocial/geo/promo link categories. In some implementations, thecorrelation threshold can be predetermined.

In some implementations the correlation measure can indicate the“distance” between the category identifiers of two social/geo/promo linkcategories. That is, the smaller the correlation measure, the smallerthe “distance” between the category identifiers, and the more similarthe category identifiers are. For this type of correlation measure, thelarger the correlation measure, the less similar the categoryidentifiers are. Identifying categories that have correlation criteriathat are less than a correlation threshold means identifying thecategories with a category identifier that is close (within thecorrelation threshold) to a category identifier of the most recentlyselected category.

Alternatively, in some implementations, the correlation measure canindicate the “closeness” of the category identifiers of twosocial/geo/promo link categories. That is, the larger the correlationmeasure, the more similar the category identifiers are. For this type ofcorrelation measure, the process 600 would identify the categorieshaving a correlation measure that is greater than a correlationthreshold.

Continuing the example, if the requested social/geo/promo linkpromotional data set has three positions and only the first position isfilled (by category A), the social/geo/promo link categories having acorrelation measure that is less than a correlation threshold areidentified, where the correlation measure is a measure of how “distant”the identified category is to category A. For example, the categories B,C, E, F, and H can be identified as being too close to category A if oneof the correlation criteria (associated with category A) of each ofthese categories is found to be less than the correlation threshold.

In some implementations, a given social/geo/promo link category in theset of candidate social/geo/promo link categories can have a separatecorrelation measure for at least one pair-wise combination of a categoryidentifier of the given social/geo/promo link category and a categoryidentifier of the most recently selected social/geo/promo link category.If a given social/geo/promo link category in the set of candidatesocial/geo/promo link categories has multiple correlation criteriaassociated with the most recently selected social/geo/promo linkcategory, a composite correlation measure can be determined for thegiven social/geo/promo link category. The composite correlation measurecan be a maximum, a minimum, or a combination (e.g., a weightedcombination) of the separate correlation criteria for the givensocial/geo/promo link category. In these implementations, the candidatesocial/geo/promo link categories which are too close to previouslyselected social/geo/promo link categories can be identified by comparingthe composite correlation criteria of the candidate categories to thecorrelation threshold.

Consider the case, in the above example, where each social/geo/promolink category (A through L) has two category identifiers. Category B hasa separate correlation measure for each pair-wise combination of one ofcategory B's two category identifiers (VI.sub.B1 and VI.sub.B2) and oneof category A's two category identifiers (VI.sub.A1 and VI.sub.A2). Thatis, category B has four separate correlation criteria (SM.sub.B1,A1,SM.sub.B1,A2, SM.sub.B2,A1, and SM.sub.B2,A2), where SM.sub.Bi,Aj is theseparate correlation measure for the pair-wise combination of categoryB's category identifier VI.sub.Bi and category A's category identifierVI.sub.Aj. A composite correlation measure CSM.sub.B,A can be determinedfor category B by taking the maximum, the minimum, or a combination ofthe separate correlation criteria SM.sub.B1,A1, SM.sub.B1,A2,SM.sub.B2,A1, and SM.sub.B2,A2. To find the correlation measure thatindicates the most similar category identifiers when the correlationmeasure represents “distance,” the composite correlation measureCSM.sub.B,A can be set to the minimum of the correlation criteria. Thatis, CSM.sub.B,A=min.sub.i,j{SM.sub.Bi,Aj}. A composite correlationmeasure can be computed for each social/geo/promo link category in theset of candidate social/geo/promo link categories (e.g., categories Bthrough L) with multiple correlation criteria associated with categoryA.

Alternatively, to find the correlation measure that indicates the mostsimilar category identifiers when the correlation measure represents“closeness,” the composite correlation measure CSM.sub.B,A can be set tothe maximum of the correlation criteria. That is,CSM.sub.B,A=max.sub.i,j{SM.sub.Bi,Aj}. For this type of compositecorrelation measure, the process 600 would identify the categorieshaving a composite correlation measure that is greater than acorrelation threshold.

In the example described above, the categories B, C, E, F, and H areidentified as being too close to category A. These candidate categoriescan be identified by comparing the composite correlation criteria withthe correlation threshold. In this example, CSM.sub.B,A, CSM.sub.C,A,CSM.sub.E,A, CSM.sub.F,A, and CSM.sub.H,A are less than the correlationthreshold, where the separate correlation criteria represent “distance.”

Social/geo/promo link categories which are identified are removed fromthe set of candidate social/geo/promo link categories (608). That is,social/geo/promo link categories that are too similar to the mostrecently selected social/geo/promo link category are eliminated fromfurther consideration based on the correlation criteria.

In the above example, identified categories B, C, E, F, and H areremoved from the set of candidate social/geo/promo link categories asbeing too close in correlation to category A. After the identifiedcategories are removed, the set of candidate social/geo/promo linkcategories includes categories D, G, I, J, K, and L.

A next social/geo/promo link category is selected for the next empty(e.g., unfilled) position of the social/geo/promo link promotional dataset, where the next social/geo/promo link category is selected from theset of candidate social/geo/promo link categories (610). For an orderedset of candidate social/geo/promo link categories, the next mostrelevant social/geo/promo link category remaining in the set is selectedfor the next position of the social/geo/promo link promotional data set.

Continuing the example, category D is selected to fill the next (e.g.,second) position of the social/geo/promo link promotional data set.Category D is selected, because category D has the highest relevancescore of the remaining categories in the set of candidatesocial/geo/promo link categories. After category D is selected, the setof candidate social/geo/promo link categories includes categories G, I,J, K, and L.

In some implementations, when the set of candidate social/geo/promo linkcategories is ordered according to relevance, the correlation criteriafor a particular social/geo/promo link category are not compared to thecorrelation threshold unless the preceding social/geo/promo linkcategories in the ordered set have already been selected or eliminated.That is, after the first most relevant social/geo/promo link category isselected, the second social/geo/promo link category in the ordered setis selected if the second social/geo/promo link category is not toosimilar to the first social/geo/promo link category. If the secondsocial/geo/promo link category is too similar, the next social/geo/promolink category in the ordered set is checked for correlation. The processcontinues until the social/geo/promo link positions of thesocial/geo/promo link promotional data set are filled. Referring to theabove example where category A is selected for the first position andcategories B and C are eliminated due to correlation to category A,category D is checked for correlation and selected to fill the next(e.g., second) position of the social/geo/promo link promotional dataset. Categories E through L are not checked for closeness to category A.

If there is at least one empty position remaining in the relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set (604), the process repeatssteps 606 through 610. The elimination and selection process repeatsuntil a number (e.g., all) of the social/geo/promo link positions forthe related social/geo/promo link promotional data set have been filled.If the number (e.g., all) of the positions of the relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set have been filled, the process600 ends (612).

In the above example, only two of the three social/geo/promo linkpositions have been filled, so the elimination and selection processrepeats for the remaining empty social/geo/promo link position.Categories G, I, and J can be identified as being too close incorrelation to category D (e.g., the most recently selectedsocial/geo/promo link category) by comparing the composite correlationmeasure (associated with category D) of these categories to thecorrelation threshold. The identified categories G, I, and J areeliminated from the set of candidate social/geo/promo link categories,and the set then includes categories K and L. Category K is selected tofill the third and final social/geo/promo link position of the relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set.

In some implementations, correlation criteria of social/geo/promo linkcategories can be used to reorder the set of candidate social/geo/promolink categories. That is, instead of or in addition to using thecorrelation criteria to eliminate social/geo/promo link categories,correlation criteria can be used to boost or lower the order position ofa social/geo/promo link category in the ordered set of candidatesocial/geo/promo link categories. For example, the boosting or loweringcan be based on the correlation measure of a social/geo/promo linkcategory relative to the correlation criteria of other social/geo/promolink categories. In this implementation, the ordering of the set ofcandidate social/geo/promo link categories can account for bothrelevance to requested content and correlation to previously selectedsocial/geo/promo link categories.

FIG. 31 is a flow diagram of an example process 700 for providingmultiple related social/geo/promo link promotional data sets withclustered categories. The process 700 begins by determining whetherthere is at least one empty (e.g., unfilled) related social/geo/promolink promotional data set (702). In some implementations, the relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set request can include thenumber of related social/geo/promo link promotional data sets desired.If there are a predetermined number (e.g., zero) of empty relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data sets remaining, the process 700ends (716).

At the start of the process 700, the requested social/geo/promo linkpromotional data sets have not been filled, so the process 700 continuesto the next step to fill the first requested social/geo/promo linkpromotional data set. A first social/geo/promo link category is selectedfor a first position of the social/geo/promo link promotional data set,where the first social/geo/promo link category is in a set of candidatesocial/geo/promo link categories (704). In some implementations, the setof candidate social/geo/promo link categories is ordered according tothe relevance of the social/geo/promo link categories to the requestedcontent of the web page with which the related social/geo/promo linkpromotional data sets are to be displayed. For an ordered set ofcandidate social/geo/promo link categories, the top relevance scoringsocial/geo/promo link category is selected for the first position of thefirst social/geo/promo link promotional data set.

As a second example, the ordered set can have the following order: A, B,C, D, . . . , L. Category A can be chosen as the most relevantsocial/geo/promo link category for the first position of the firstsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set.

The process 700 determines whether there is at least one empty (e.g.,unfilled) position remaining in the related social/geo/promo linkpromotional data set (706). In some implementations, the relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set request can include thenumber of social/geo/promo link categories desired for each relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set.

If there is at least one empty position remaining in the relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set, social/geo/promo linkcategories having a correlation measure that is greater than acorrelation threshold are identified, where at least one identifiedsocial/geo/promo link category has one or more correlation criteriaassociated with the most recently selected social/geo/promo linkcategory (708). The identified social/geo/promo link categories are inthe set of candidate social/geo/promo link categories. In someimplementations, the correlation threshold can be predetermined. Becausethe social/geo/promo link categories within a social/geo/promo linkpromotional data set are being clustered, the social/geo/promo linkcategories with correlation criteria which are greater than thecorrelation threshold are identified. That is, for a correlation measurethat indicates “distance,” the social/geo/promo link categories with acorrelation measure greater than the correlation threshold are thecategories that are too diverse to be clustered with the most recentlyselected social/geo/promo link category.

Alternatively, in some implementations, the correlation measure canindicate the “closeness” of the category identifiers of twosocial/geo/promo link categories. For this type of correlation measure,the process 700 would identify the categories having a correlationmeasure that is less than a correlation threshold.

In some implementations, a given social/geo/promo link category in theset of candidate social/geo/promo link categories can have a separatecorrelation measure for at least one pair-wise combination of a categoryidentifier of the given social/geo/promo link category and a categoryidentifier of the most recently selected social/geo/promo link category.A composite correlation measure can be determined for the givensocial/geo/promo link category, for example, by taking a maximum, aminimum, or a combination (e.g., a weighted combination) of the separatecorrelation criteria for the given social/geo/promo link category. Inthese implementations, the social/geo/promo link categories which aretoo diverse can be identified by comparing the composite correlationcriteria to the correlation threshold.

Continuing the second example, if the first social/geo/promo linkpromotional data set has three positions and only the first position isfilled (by category A), the social/geo/promo link categories having acomposite correlation measure that is greater than a correlationthreshold are identified, where the correlation measure is a measure ofhow “distant” the identified category is to category A. For example, thecategories D, G, I, J, and K can be identified as being too diverserelative to category A if the composite correlation measure (associatedwith category A) of these categories is found to be greater than thecorrelation threshold.

Social/geo/promo link categories which are identified are removed fromthe set of candidate social/geo/promo link categories (710). That is,social/geo/promo link categories that are too diverse relative to themost recently selected social/geo/promo link category are eliminatedfrom further consideration based on the correlation criteria.

In the above second example, identified categories D, G, I, J, and K areremoved from the set of candidate social/geo/promo link categories asbeing too diverse relative to category A. After the identifiedcategories are removed, the set of candidate social/geo/promo linkcategories includes categories B, C, E, F, H, and L.

A next social/geo/promo link category is selected for the next empty(e.g., unfilled) position of the social/geo/promo link promotional dataset, where the next social/geo/promo link category is selected from theset of candidate social/geo/promo link categories (712). For an orderedset of candidate social/geo/promo link categories, the next mostrelevant social/geo/promo link category remaining in the set is selectedfor the next position of the social/geo/promo link promotional data set.

Continuing the second example, category B is selected to fill the next(e.g., second) position of the first social/geo/promo link promotionaldata set. Category B is selected, because category B has the highestrelevance score of the remaining categories in the set of candidatesocial/geo/promo link categories. After category B is selected, the setof candidate social/geo/promo link categories includes categories C, E,F, H, and L.

In some implementations, when the set of candidate social/geo/promo linkcategories is ordered according to relevance, the correlation criteriafor a particular social/geo/promo link category are not compared to thecorrelation threshold unless the preceding social/geo/promo linkcategories in the ordered set have already been selected or eliminated.Referring to the second example where category A is selected for thefirst position, category B is checked for correlation and selected tofill the next (e.g., second) position of the social/geo/promo linkpromotional data set. Categories C through L are not checked forcloseness to category A.

If there is at least one empty position remaining in the relatedsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set (706), the process repeatssteps 708 through 712. The elimination and selection process repeatsuntil a number (e.g., all) of the social/geo/promo link positions forthe related social/geo/promo link promotional data set have been filled.

In the above second example, only two of the three social/geo/promo linkpositions have been filled, so the elimination and selection processrepeats for the remaining empty social/geo/promo link position. In thisexample iteration, none of the categories are identified as being toodistant relative to category B (e.g., the most recently selectedsocial/geo/promo link category), so none of the categories areeliminated from the set of candidate social/geo/promo link categories.The set still includes categories C, E, F, H, and L. Category C isselected to fill the third and final social/geo/promo link position ofthe first related social/geo/promo link promotional data set. The set ofcandidate social/geo/promo link categories then consists of categoriesE, F, H, and L.

If a number (e.g., all) of the positions of the related social/geo/promolink promotional data set have been filled, the process 700 returns tostep 702. Again, the process 700 determines whether there is at leastone empty (e.g., unfilled) related social/geo/promo link promotionaldata set remaining (702). Consider the case, in the second example,where two related social/geo/promo link promotional data sets arerequested. Because only the first related social/geo/promo linkpromotional data set has been filled, the process 700 repeats for thesecond requested social/geo/promo link promotional data set.

Before continuing to step 704, the process 700 adds a number (e.g., all)of the removed identified social/geo/promo link categories to the set ofcandidate social/geo/promo link categories (714). This step is notperformed for the first social/geo/promo link promotional data set,because before the first social/geo/promo link position is filled in thefirst social/geo/promo link promotional data set, social/geo/promo linkcategories have not been removed from the set of candidatesocial/geo/promo link categories. For later social/geo/promo linkpromotional data sets, previously removed social/geo/promo linkcategories are added back to the set of candidate social/geo/promo linkcategories because, although these categories were too dissimilar to beincluded in the cluster for the first social/geo/promo link promotionaldata set, the social/geo/promo link categories for the othersocial/geo/promo link promotional data sets are chosen to be diverserelative to the social/geo/promo link categories selected for the firstsocial/geo/promo link promotional data set.

Referring to the second example, the social/geo/promo link categories D,G, I, J, and K which were previously removed during the filling of thefirst social/geo/promo link promotional data set are added back to theset of candidate social/geo/promo link categories. That is, the set ofcandidate social/geo/promo link categories then includes categories E,F, H, and L (which had not been removed) and the added categories D, G,I, J, and K.

The process 700 repeats steps 704 through 714 until there are apredetermined number (e.g., zero) of remaining empty social/geo/promolink promotional data sets to be filled. If there are a predeterminednumber (e.g., zero) of empty social/geo/promo link promotional data setsremaining, the process 700 ends (716).

The features described can be implemented in digital electroniccircuitry, or in computer hardware, firmware, software, or incombinations of them. The features can be implemented in a computerprogram product tangibly embodied in an information carrier, e.g., in amachine-readable storage device or in a propagated signal, for executionby a programmable processor; and method steps can be performed by aprogrammable processor executing a program of instructions to performfunctions of the described implementations by operating on input dataand generating output.

The described features can be implemented advantageously in one or morecomputer programs that are executable on a programmable system includingat least one programmable processor coupled to receive data andinstructions from, and to transmit data and instructions to, a datastorage system, at least one input device, and at least one outputdevice. A computer program is a set of instructions that can be used,directly or indirectly, in a computer to perform a certain activity orbring about a certain result. A computer program can be written in anyform of programming language (e.g., Objective-C, Java), includingcompiled or interpreted languages, and it can be deployed in any form,including as a stand-alone program or as a module, component,subroutine, or other unit suitable for use in a computing environment.

Suitable processors for the execution of a program of instructionsinclude, by way of example, both general and special purposemicroprocessors, and the sole processor or one of multiple processors orcores, of any kind of computer. Generally, a processor will receiveinstructions and data from a read-only memory or a random access memoryor both. The essential elements of a computer are a processor forexecuting instructions and one or more memories for storing instructionsand data. Generally, a computer will also include, or be operativelycoupled to communicate with, one or more mass storage devices forstoring data files; such devices include magnetic disks, such asinternal hard disks and removable disks; magneto-optical disks; andoptical disks. Storage devices suitable for tangibly embodying computerprogram instructions and data include all forms of non-volatile memory,including by way of example semiconductor memory devices, such as EPROM,EEPROM, and flash memory devices; magnetic disks such as internal harddisks and removable disks; magneto-optical disks; and CD-ROM and DVD-ROMdisks. The processor and the memory can be supplemented by, orincorporated in, ASICs (application-specific integrated circuits).

To provide for interaction with a user, the features can be implementedon a computer having a display device such as a CRT (cathode ray tube)or LCD (liquid crystal display) monitor for displaying information tothe user and a keyboard and a pointing device such as a mouse or atrackball by which the user can provide input to the computer.

The features can be implemented in a computer system that includes aback-end component, such as a data server, or that includes a middlewarecomponent, such as an application server or an Internet server, or thatincludes a front-end component, such as a client computer having agraphical user interface or an Internet browser, or any combination ofthem. The components of the system can be connected by any form ormedium of digital data communication such as a communication network.Examples of communication networks include, e.g., a LAN, a WAN, and thecomputers and networks forming the Internet.

The computer system can include clients and servers. A client and serverare generally remote from each other and typically interact through anetwork. The relationship of client and server arises by virtue ofcomputer programs running on the respective computers and having aclient-server relationship to each other.

A number of implementations have been described. Nevertheless, it willbe understood that various modifications may be made. For example,elements of one or more implementations may be combined, deleted,modified, or supplemented to form further implementations. As yetanother example, the logic flows depicted in the figures do not requirethe particular order shown, or sequential order, to achieve desirableresults. In addition, other steps may be provided, or steps may beeliminated, from the described flows, and other components may be addedto, or removed from, the described systems. Accordingly, otherimplementations are within the scope of the following claims.

POTENTIAL ASPECTS OR ELEMENTS OF THE CLAIMED INVENTION THAT CAN BEOPTIONALLY EXCLUDED OR NEGATIVELY CLAIMED. The present invention canalso in particular claimed embodiments exclude or negatively claim oneor more aspect of the following list, e.g., to more particularly reciteor exclude embodiments or elements that might occur in cited or otherpublished art. Accordingly, the present invention can optionallyexclude, not include, or not provide, one of more, or any combinationof, promotion, online coupons, mobile services, entertainment shopping,penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliateadvertising or services for such items as e-commerce, media andentertainment, sports, personal & financial network, real estate,educational services, ancillary services, advertisements, serviceproviders, social networking, social networking communities, socialnetworking activities, social plugins, ad links, promotions, socialapplications, entertainment shopping, penny auctions or online auctions,advertisements and affiliate advertising or services, social networking,social networking communities, messaging, online communications, userprofiles, viewing public & private user profiles, online dating, gaming,and/retail stores, virtual communities and virtual goods and informationabout microloans or microcredit, humanitarian aid and support otherworldly causes through charitable donations or sustainable gifts, e.g.,but not limited to, various types of real estate (e.g. vacant land,residential, commercial, recreational, retail, shopping malls, hotels,motels, golf courses, resorts, marinas, industrial, vacation, timeshares, condominiums, multifamily, and other types of real estate etc.),travel & hospitality services, educational services, ancillary services,(e.g. brokers, agents, relocation services, internet marketing,concierge, transportation, entertainment, lenders, appraisers,education, developers, contractors, inspectors, homeimprovements/remodeling, basement designs, landscaping, home warranties,insurance, indoor & outdoor furniture, fixtures, windows, siding,roofing, heating/cooling, solar, plumbing, electrical, mechanical, andadditional services etc.) and providing other services such as loans andquotes, auto loans, mortgages, banking services, family fun, sports,restaurants, events, consumer packaged goods, groceries, apparel,beverages, books & magazines, foods, health care, household, office,personal care, pet care, photography, autos, business, classic carparts, restoration and maintenance services, collectibles & art, customcar parts, restoration and maintenance services, deals & giftseducation, electronics, fashion, financial, healthcare, home, outdoor &décor, travel & hospitality services, insurance, online services, otherlegal, marketing, medical facilities, medical insurance, medicalretailers, motors, pets, physicians, dentists, other practioners, publicservices, psychics, mediums & spiritual advisors, travel & hospitality,real estate, ancillary services, sports, travel, tourism, wedding,parties & media and entertainment, online dating, and the like. Thepresent invention can also exclude one or more of the following: (1)finding social awareness of companies found in patent searches; (2)showing entities such as companies on maps; (3) finding local travel &hospitality, real estate, educational services & ancillary serviceproviders and other types of service providers on map searches; (4)ranking entities found using geospatial mapping; (5) representingobjects (e.g., brand or logo or product) of entities on a geospatialmap; (6) providing local comparative shopping information to members ona website; and/or (7) modeling user views to include objects (brand,logo, or product) of entities in local environment.

Although various embodiments of this invention have been described abovewith a certain degree of particularity, and/or with reference to oneand/or more individual embodiments, those skilled in the art could makenumerous alterations to the disclosed embodiments without departing fromthe spirit and/or scope of this invention. And while the subject matterhas been described in language specific to structural features and/ormethodological arts, it is to be understood that the subject matterdefined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to thespecific features and/or acts descried above. Rather, the specificfeatures and acts described above are disclosed as example forms ofimplementing the claimed subject matter. It is intended that all mattercontained in the above description and/or shown in the accompanyingdrawings shall be interpreted as illustrative only and not limiting.Changes in detail and/or structure can be made without departing fromthe basic elements of the invention as defined in the following claims.

The invention can further include a system for providing socialnetworking interactions using Internet and mobile devices that provideend user customized interactive displays of three dimensional (3D)geospatial maps comprising end user customized ad links, promotionsrelating to Products, Goods & Services, and related company and localinformation, the system comprising:

(a) a system component for collecting and analyzing initial end usersdata via a processor on a computer system to provide initial end usersdata sets, the initial end users data sets comprising (1) initial endusers' (A) online activity, (B) geo-target location and multiple pointsof interest, (C) receiving current location of user's electronic ormobile device and multiple points of interest, (D) onlinecommunications, (E) group chat, (F) circle of friends, (G) hangouts, (H)games, (I) sports, (J) social networking, (K) search inquiries, (L)videos or photos, (M) instant messenger, (N) social networking, (O) enduser profiles, (P) viewing and interactions with online ad links,promotions, (Q) purchasing, (R) purchasing behavior, (S) generating userbehavior data, (T) preferences and (U) buying patterns; the initial enduser data sets further comprising initial end users related (2) consumerprofiles, (3) trends, (4) cloud-type configuration sharing and handlinglarge amounts of user data across multiple enterprises and (5) targetmarkets;

(b) a system component for generating, via a processor on a computersystem, first promotional data sets from the initial end user data sets,the first promotional data sets comprising first sets of customized adlinks, promotions for each of (i) the initial end users, (ii) additionalend users, and (iii) target end user groups, the first sets ofcustomized ad links, promotions relating to (1) Products, (2) Goods, (3)Services, (4) company and local information, (5) integrated socialnetworking and (6) associated 3D geospatial mapping coordinates; and

(c) a system component for generating, via a processor on a computersystem or mobile device, second promotional data sets from the firstpromotional data sets to provide 3D geospatial map interactive displayscomprising the first sets of customized ad links, promotions relating to(1) Products, (2) Goods, (3) Services, (4) company and localinformation, (5) integrated social networking and (6) associated 3Dgeospatial mapping coordinates; and

(d) a system component for selecting and integrating, into the 3Dgeospatial map interactive displays comprising the first sets ofcustomized ad links, promotions, a first social/geo/promo link categoryfor a first position of a social/geo/promo link promotional data set;and identifying one or more second social/geo/promo link categoriesusing one or more correlation criteria, at least one secondsocial/geo/promo link category having one or more correlation criteriaassociated with the first social/geo/promo link category.

The invention can further include a computer-readable medium havinginstructions stored thereon, which, when executed by a processor, causesthe processor to perform operations comprising:

(a) for a set of candidate social/geo/promo link categories and at leastone social/geo/promo link promotional data set associated with a webpage; comprising

-   -   (i) selecting a first social/geo/promo link category for a first        position of the social/geo/promo link promotional data set, the        first social/geo/promo link category being in the set of        candidate social/geo/promo link categories; and

(b) for at least one empty position in the social/geo/promo linkpromotional data set:

-   -   (i) identifying social/geo/promo link categories having a        correlation measure that is greater than a correlation        threshold, the identified social/geo/promo link categories being        in the set of candidate social/geo/promo link categories, at        least one social/geo/promo link category in the set of candidate        social/geo/promo link categories having one or more correlation        measures associated with a most recently selected        social/geo/promo link category;    -   (ii) removing the identified social/geo/promo link categories        from the set of candidate social/geo/promo link categories        before selecting a next social/geo/promo link category for a        next empty position of the social/geo/promo link promotional        data set;    -   (iii) adding at least one removed identified social/geo/promo        link category to the set of candidate social/geo/promo link        categories before selecting a first social/geo/promo link        category for a first position of a next social/geo/promo link        promotional data set; and    -   (iii) selecting a next social/geo/promo link category for a next        empty position of the social/geo/promo link promotional data        set, the next social/geo/promo link category being in the set of        candidate social/geo/promo link categories

EXAMPLES Exemplary Implementation of Non-Limiting Embodiments of thePresent Invention

The following example is shown by way of example and is not intended tolimit the scope of the present invention in any way.

Example 1 Social Earth, Inc.: Description of Present Invention Example

The present invention in a non-limiting embodiment called SOCIAL EARTH™provides, in one aspect, for an infrastructure and global platform thatprovides users and members and businesses of all types with access tobroad markets for the delivery of Social Earth ad links, promotions,online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services,entertainment shopping, penny auctions or online auctions,advertisements and affiliate advertising or services from merchants andsellers from around the world to its highly-engaged Social Shoppers viaits unique live view of the planet. The site includes links to placesand events, data on the landscape, interactive 360 panoramas,fly-through shopping tours with stunning 3D imagery and videos,advertising on the landscape, advanced search for private and publicinformation, social networking integration, self-posting for uploadinguser generated content, custom tools, apps, widgets and otherembodiments. SOCIAL EARTH™ will include Social Earth Mobile allowingSocial Shoppers to receive Social Earth Mobile Coupons for Products,Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, penny auctions or onlineauctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising or services basedupon their precise location. Mobile apps for smart phones (Android andtablets, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad) are provided that will allowSocial Shoppers to receive Social Earth Mobile products, services, orretail based upon their precise location or other criteria, such asshopping or interest preferences. With Social Earth Mobile, SocialShoppers can explore the same 3D imagery and terrain as the desktopversion. Fly to your current location or just about anywhere in theworld with the touch of a button. Pan, zoom, and tilt your view as youtravel around the globe. Search for cities, places and businesses aroundthe world. View layers of geographic information and more. The inventionprovides opportunities to reach people at the point of shopping—abenefit both to shoppers and merchants. What do you get when you combinea global marketplace with buyers and sellers and ad links, promotions,online coupons, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping,penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliateadvertising or services from merchants and sellers from around theworld, including without limitation, for such items as products,services, e-commerce, media and entertainment, sports, personal &financial network, real estate, educational services, ancillaryservices, advertisements, service providers, social networking, onlinedating, gaming, retail stores, virtual communities and virtual goods andinformation about microloans or microcredit, humanitarian aid andsupport other worldly causes through charitable donations or sustainablegifts, the social media revolution and the power of geo-mappingtechnology? You get a cutting-edge online experience that blends thebest of online shopping and social networking and takes it to astratospheric new height called SOCIAL EARTH™.

Unlike any other shopping site, when Social Earth site subscriberscalled Social Shoppers (OR SE SHOPPERS), visit the Social Earth website,e.g., at www.socialearth.co, they are invited to travel virtually aroundthe globe in search of ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobileservices, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, pennyauctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising orservices from merchants and sellers from around the world. Thisone-of-a-kind website aggregates ad links, promotions, online coupons,mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping,penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliateadvertising or services from merchants and sellers from around the world(collectively referred to as “Social Earth Shopping”) and showcases themin their actual, physical location on the websites through GPStechnology and unique Live View of Earth. As Social Shoppers shop theworld for coupons, products, goods & services, they can view SocialEarth Shopping from major brands for ad links, promotions, onlinecoupons, mobile services Products, Goods & Services, entertainmentshopping, penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements andaffiliate advertising or services from merchants and sellers from aroundthe world for such items as: products, goods & services, serviceproviders, media and entertainment, sports, personal & financialnetwork, travel & hospitality services, real estate, educationalservices, ancillary services, advertisements, service providers, socialnetworking, online dating, gaming, retail stores, virtual communitiesand virtual goods and information about microloans or microcredit,humanitarian aid and support other worldly causes through charitabledonations or sustainable gifts, e.g., but not limited to, onlineauctions, various types of real estate (e.g. vacant land, residential,commercial, recreational, retail, shopping malls, hotels, motels, golfcourses, resorts, marinas, industrial, vacation, time shares,condominiums, multifamily, and other types of real estate etc.),educational services, ancillary services, loans and quotes, auto loans,mortgages, banking services, and/or any other product or service, e.g.,but not limited to, family fun, sports, restaurants, events and hundredsof top consumer packaged goods brands for groceries, apparel, beverages,books & magazines, foods, health care, household, office, personal care,pet care, photography and other embodiments.

Social Shoppers will find great ad links, promotions, online coupons,mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping,penny auctions, or online auctions, advertisements and affiliateadvertising or services from merchants and sellers from the leadingtravel & hospitality industry, restaurants, toy and entertainmentcompanies and top retailers around the world. Social Shoppers can selecta target location in the U.S., e.g., but not limited to, Atlanta,Austin, Dallas, Denver, San Diego, San Francisco or in other citiesaround the world. Social Shoppers can find product or services deals inLondon or they can tour the planet at will, jumping from Hong Kong toAmsterdam to Buenos Aires to check out the bargains. Because the Earthview comes live from satellite and webcam images, shoppers can zoom infor a closer look or zoom out to gain perspective on the location.

SOCIAL EARTH™ will offer advertising opportunities for serviceproviders, business centers, affiliates and business owners e.g. forbusiness services, healthcare services, specialty financial services,consumer products, specialty retail and media and entertainment,lenders, mortgage companies, auto finance companies and other businessowners' who want to reach millions of users and members online on SocialEarth. Advertisements will appear at the top of consumers' property andservice provider search results ahead of other properties meeting theirsearch criteria. Realtors, mortgage lending, auto finance, financialservices, healthcare, travel & hospitality services, cars, insurance,online education, government services, media and entertainment andsports industry, travel industry, top interne advertisers, social brandsand thousands of service providers, business owners and affiliates willhave the ability to purchase advertising space, which will appear at thetop of consumers' property and service provider search results ahead ofother properties meeting their search criteria. Consumers can learnabout neighborhoods, property values, schools, shopping centers, andcost of living features and join with thousands of service providers andbusiness owners from around the world. Our goal is to help consumersconveniently connect with thousands of service providers and businessowners to find what they're looking for in our Social Earth PersonalNetwork.

SOCIAL EARTH™ will also provide links and free real estate informationand mortgage quotes from national lenders and mortgage companies for thepurchase of a new home, refinance, consolidating debt, auto loans,insurance quotes or home equity loans. The SOCIAL EARTH™ database willinclude links to millions of residential listings, commercial propertiesand thousands of service providers and business owners. Millions ofusers and members will search online and align with thousands of serviceproviders and business owners in search of everything from “A” to “Z”whether its buying a home or a new or used car, finding an apartment ora medical professional or healthcare provider, booking travel, weatherupdates, breaking news, reading about your favorite celebrity orentertainer or sports' team, SOCIAL EARTH™ has it all.

The Company's website will populate the virtual landscape with varioustypes of real estate (e.g. vacant land, residential, commercial,recreational, retail, shopping malls, hotels, motels, golf courses,resorts, marinas, industrial, vacation, time shares, condominiums,multifamily, and other types of real estate, etc.), travel & hospitalityservices, educational services, ancillary services (e.g. brokers,agents, relocation services, internet marketing, concierge,transportation, hospitality, lenders, appraisers, education, developers,contractors, inspectors, home improvements/remodeling, basement designs,landscaping, home warranties, insurance, indoor & outdoor furniture,fixtures, windows, siding, roofing, heating/cooling, solar, plumbing,electrical, mechanical, and additional etc.), advertisements fromservice providers and various links from the desired search request.Consumers can zoom in and out of the Social Earth Personal Network,click on advertisements and links and see the exact location of abusiness, retailer, restaurant or shopping mall on the landscape.Advertisements will appear at the top of the consumers' property andservice provider search results. Home buyers and renters can learn aboutneighborhoods, property values, apartments, schools, shopping centers,cost of living and connect with thousands of real estate professionals,educational services, ancillary services and other service providers andbusiness owners from around the world. The SOCIAL EARTH™ PersonalNetwork will allow consumers too easily and conveniently search for allof their personal and financial services from the comfort of their home.The future of searching for all of your personal and financial needs viathe Internet is here with the development of a SOCIAL EARTH™ PersonalNetwork.

SOCIAL EARTH™ displays, organizes and delivers information across manysocial layers and social media sites featuring top-notch content,stunning satellite imagery, aerial photography and graphic animatedcolor overlays on top of Google Earth™. SOCIAL EARTH™ delivers adelightful mash-up of content, Social Earth Shopping and live socialnetworking feeds from, e.g., Twitter™. Social Earth™ utilizes the topsocial networking platforms such as Facebook™ and Twitter™ to allowSocial Shoppers to share the latest product or services deals with theirfriends. Unlike Groupon™, Livingsocial™ or Google Offers™, SOCIAL EARTH™aggregates Social Earth Shopping on its site. Social Shoppers areencouraged to share these product or services deals with their friendsin Facebook™ and Twitter™. The global sharing capabilities are builtinto SOCIAL EARTH™ technology using sophisticated technology integratinggeospatial mapping, layering location-relevant data, and GPStechnologies.

Social Shoppers are able to find great products or services in theirlocal areas or just about anywhere else in the world with the click of amouse or input on their mobile device. Capitalizing on the popularity ofsocial networking giants such as Facebook™ and Twitter™ with more than750 million users worldwide, SOCIAL EARTH™ creates an online communitythat taps into the power of social networking by integrating live socialfeeds from these social networking giants directly into its website. Bycreating a highly engaged social networking community, Social Earthcreates “stickiness,” keeping the Social Shoppers on the site for longperiods of time, as well as bringing them back again and again. In otherwords, SOCIAL EARTH™ provides long-time customer loyalty, not just aone-off deal.

Social Earth™ also provides microloans or microcredit and donates aportion of each “Social Earth online coupon, mobile services, Products,Goods or Services” that are sold on Social Earth will be allocated tomicroloans or microcredit, humanitarian aid or other worldly cause orsustainable gift to help those in need. The community aspect of SOCIALEARTH™ is the driver behind building awareness of the website and itsfeatured ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobile services,Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, penny auctions oronline auctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising or servicesfrom merchants and sellers from around the world. Existing and potentialcustomers provide advertising by spreading the word to their friendsabout the great product or services deals they have found on a shoppingsite such as SOCIAL EARTH™. Add to that the power of collective buyingand its easy to see how the SOCIAL EARTH™ community can leverage groupsize in exchange for larger discounts. Social Earth delivers ad links,promotions, online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services,entertainment shopping, penny auctions or online auctions,advertisements and affiliate advertising or services from merchants andsellers from around the world to its Social Shoppers via its unique liveview of the Earth that includes links to places and events, data on thelandscape, interactive 360 panoramas, fly-through shopping tours withstunning 3D imagery. The use of geospatial mapping for associatinginformation to specific places can included, but it not limited to, oneor more of: Live links to places and events; Data on the landscape; Zoomto birds-eye and human scale views; 3D custom audio/visual content;Interactive 360 panoramas; Fly-through tours with content, narration,music; Stunning imagery and videos; 3D buildings and landscapinge-commerce and mobile banking tools and hooks; Advertising on thelandscape; Advanced search for private and public information; Socialnetworking integration; Self-posting for uploading user generatedcontent; Custom tools, apps and widgets; and the like. SOCIAL EARTH™Mobile sends mobile coupons to Social Shoppers based upon their preciselocation. This provides opportunities to reach people at the point ofshopping—a benefit both to shoppers and merchants.

Social Layers. Social Shoppers virtually travel around the globe insearch of shopping products or services, as well as bargains. SocialEarths technology will drive content, ad links, promotions, onlinecoupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainmentshopping, penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements andaffiliate advertising or services from merchants and sellers from aroundthe world into a “virtual Earth” based upon their precise location andGPS technology. Social Shoppers will be able to view Social Earth™Shopping from around the world by geo-target location, their hometown oranother city around the world and virtually travel there. Thisone-of-a-kind website aggregates Social Earth™ Shopping from around theworld and showcase them in their actual, physical location on thevirtual Earth. Because the virtual Earth is “interactive,” one can zoomin for a more detailed view or zoom out to gain perspective on wherethey are in the world. Social Earth™ Shopping can last for days, weeksor even months. What makes Social Earths website different from othergroup buying websites is that Social Earth's™ website allows SocialShoppers to search for ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobileservices, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping, pennyauctions or online auctions, as well as advertisements and affiliateadvertising or services from merchants and sellers from around the worldon a virtual Earth. Users will be able to customize their buyingpreferences, engage in social networking, social networking communities,social networking activities and support worthwhile causes. SocialEarth's™ website allows Social Shoppers to select from a menu of couponsbased upon their preferences, which is integrated into the virtual Earthalong with other layer location-relevant data as Social Shoppers shoponline and interact with their friends on Facebook™ and Twitter™.Advertisers and merchants will send coupons to Social Shoppers based ongeo-target location.

Social Earth™ develops layer applications, which are known as “sociallayers.” These social layers allow Social Shoppers to customize theirpersonal experience on SOCIAL EARTH™ as they search for Social Earth™Shopping in their local area or just about anywhere else in the worldbased upon their interests or travels take them. Social Shoppers selectfrom a menu of “Purchase” coupon categories such as. (Arts &Entertainment, Travel, Giving Back, Eat & Drink, Deal of the Day) and“Free” coupon categories such as: (Health & Beauty, Sports, Shopping,Groceries). Social Shoppers may be able to search for other products andservices such as: Autos, Business, Classic Car Parts, Restoration andMaintenance Services, Collectibles & Art, Custom Car Parts, Restorationand Maintenance Services, Deals & Gifts, Education, Electronics,Fashion, Financial, Healthcare, Home, Outdoor & Décor, Travel &Hospitality Services, Insurance, Online Services, Other Legal,Marketing, Medical Facilities, Medical Insurance, Medical Retailers,Motors, Pets Physicians, Dentists, Other Practioners, Public Services,Psychics, Intuitives, Metaphysical, Mediums & Spiritual Advisors, RealEstate, Educational Services, Ancillary Services, Sports, Tourism,Wedding, Parties & Entertainment, Online Dating and Free Coupons).Social Earth™ drives traffic to its website by targeting Social EarthShopping from around the world, based upon a users and memberspreference, which are displayed on a unique Live View of planet Earth.Once a Social Shopper selects one or more coupon categories,entertainment shopping, penny auctions or online auctions,advertisements and affiliate advertising or services from merchants andsellers from around the world will populate the virtual Earth. SocialShoppers are able to double click on Social Earth Shopping and flydirectly to its location on Earth. Social Shoppers can also click on oneof the featured cities and take a tour of London, San Francisco orDenver and zoom down to street level to take a closer look. SocialShoppers enjoy the experience of virtually traveling around the world,zooming in and out to street level in search for great product orservices deals and sharing the latest product, goods or services, pennyauction or online auction with their friends.

In connection with a one-of-a-kind geospatial website aggregates SocialEarth™ Shopping from around the world and showcases them in theiractual, physical location on the websites unique live view of Earth. AsSocial Shoppers shop the world for bargains, they can view Social EarthShopping from major brands for family fun, sports, restaurants, eventsand hundreds of top consumer packaged goods brands for groceries,apparel, beverages, books & magazines, foods, health care, household,office, personal care, pet care, photography and other embodiments.Social Shoppers can find great products, goods or services deals fromthe leading travel & hospitality industry, restaurants, toy andentertainment companies and top retailers around the world. SocialShoppers can use “a mobile device payment method and system foreffectuating an online payment through a computer or mobile deviceequipped carrier or a mobile device equipped bank using a mobile usersand members device in connection with e-commerce and mobile bankingtransactions on the host geospatial website or mobile device (e.g.,mobile telephone, PDA, laptop computer, etc.); wherein users and memberscreate and maintain a rich-media application via a geospatial mappingplatform via the Internet comprising: mobile banking and electronicpayments.

The delivery system for a host geospatial website (accessible via amobile device or computer) will provide for a multidimensionalrepresentation of information and scalable version of web content forthe delivery of Social Earth™ Shopping from around the world on a threedimensional geospatial platform using geospatial mapping technology. Ahost geospatial website will include realistic virtual landscape usingsatellite and aerial photography that will include many content layersof web based information, e-commerce and mobile banking links, socialnetworking and virtual advertisements for a richer user experience. Ahost geospatial website shall store images, web-based content, socialdata, social plugins, social applications, penny auctions or onlineauctions, advertisements and share live social feeds from socialnetworking giants such as Facebook™ and Twitter™ and othercommunications in real-time. Connecting Social Earth Shopping fromaround the world with users and members known as “Social Shoppers” inreal-time on a geographical area across multiple social layers that aredisplayed as graphic animated color overlays on a three dimensionalgeospatial platform using geospatial mapping technology. Morespecifically, it relates to a method for users and members known as“Social Shoppers” to effectuate banking and electronic payments;accessing a user account, engaging in mobile social activities andviewing available options via a three dimensional geospatial mappingplatform using geospatial mapping technology.”

Giving Back: Social Shoppers will be able to help those who have beenimpacted by a natural disaster, live in impoverished conditions or areless fortunate in the world. Social Shoppers are able to purchasecoupons from merchants who support humanitarian causes in developingcountries and charities in their communities and local and global causesaround our planet and relief efforts for natural and man made disastersincluding devastating earthquakes and tsunamis. For example, fly toJapan and view a video on the Japan relief effort. By tapping into thepower of social networking and bringing together a collectiveconsciousness with millions of Social Shoppers, Social Earth raisesawareness for global issues and millions of dollars for microloans ormicrocredit, humanitarian aid and support other worldly causes.

Example 2 Further Description of Social Earth Example

Mission Statement: “SOCIAL EARTH Provides a Unique Shopping Experiencewhile Giving Back to Our Planet.”

Business Description:

What do you get when you combine the daily deal phenomenon, the socialmedia revolution and the power of geo-mapping technology? You get acutting-edge online experience that blends the best of social networkingwith daily deals, online auctions and other products, goods and servicestaking it to a stratospheric new height called “Social Earth” that alsogives back to our planet. The demo website for Social Earth is locatedat www.socialearth.co

Unlike any other shopping site, Social Earth will allow members to chatwith their friends while they virtually travel around the globe insearch of the best bargains, daily deals, online auctions and otherproducts & services. This one-of-a-kind social networking website thatwill be built on Google Earth™ using GPS technology to reach people atthe point of shopping displaying the exact location of daily deals,coupons, products & services from merchants in their actual, physicallocation on the planet. Users will be able to connect online just likein the real world. Users will be able to interact with their friends,play games, search for a great restaurant, museum, art gallery and more,upload photos, send instant messages and video chat with their circlesof friends. Users will also be able to participate in online auctionsand bid for Products, Goods & Services and penny auctions and find greatbargains for up to ninety percent (90%) off the retail price.

After users install a Google Earth™ plug-in, which has been downloadedmore than one billion times since October 2011, they will be able toselect their favorite cities and virtually travel around the globe insearch of major brands and great bargains. Users will be able to choosefrom a menu of coupon options for such items as (Arts & Entertainment,Travel, Giving Back, Eat & Drink, Deal of the Day). As Social Shoppersmake their coupon selections, daily deals, coupons and other Products,Goods & Services will populate the 3D globe and targeted city. Click onTravel to find great deals on: airlines, hotel, rental cars or cruise.Select Eat & Drink to find great deals at nearby restaurant, bars &clubs, organic foods, etc. In addition, Social Earth will offer freecoupon options for categories such as: (Health & Beauty, Sports,Shopping & Groceries). Select Health & Beauty to find big discounts forbath & body, fitness, weight loss and salons & spas. Select Sports tofind great bargains for golf, exercise equipment, indoor & outdooractivities and more.

Social Shoppers will be able to virtually travel around the selectedcity and virtually fly to another location in an instant. Fly Anywhereon Earth by typing in a physical address or famous landmark such as “TheEiffel Tower” in Paris, France, the “Statue of Liberty” in New York orthe “Taj Mahal” in India. Use the Google Navigation Tool to zoom down tostreet level to take a closer look. This global shopping site is goingto bring users to the exact point of shopping in an instant.

As Social Shoppers shop for great bargains, they will be able to shoponline for coupons for family fun, sports, restaurants, events andhundreds of top consumer packaged goods brands such as groceries,apparel, beverages, books & magazines, foods, health care, household,office, personal care, pet care and photography. The Company plans ontargeting major brands such as Target™, Kohl's™, General Mills™, Johnson& Johnson™, Kellogg's™, Kraft Foods™ and Walgreens™ to name a few(“Major Consumer Brands”). The Company also plans on targeting majorglobal brands from around the world to become lead advertisers on SocialEarth such as: Apple™, McDonalds™, Coca Cola™, AT&T™, Bank of America™,China Mobile™, GE™, Vodafone™ and Wal-Mart™ to become advertisingsponsors who will enjoy key placement on heavy trafficked locations,national, historic and ancient landmarks on Social Earth (“Major GlobalBrands”).

Social Earth will offer a fun new shopping experience with socialnetworking, daily deals, online auctions and other Products, Goods &Services on its site daily, but they won't last just one day. SocialEarth bargains can last for days, weeks or even months. Social Shopperswill be able to select any desired geo-target location and zoom into thelocal landscape and view some of the best shopping in cosmopolitancities around the world. Because the Earth view comes live fromsatellite and webcam images, Social Shoppers will be able to zoom in andout to take a closer look and gain a perspective on their preciselocation. Our website will feature stunning satellite imagery, aerialphotography and graphic animated color overlays on top of Google Earth™that will give Social Shoppers a wonderful perspective of our planet.Google Earth™ is an online mapping program that allows companies to notonly access and zoom through its virtual Earth, but also to build or addonto its program. Google Earth™ displays realistic satellite images ofvarying resolutions of the Earth's surface, with satellite and aerialphotos for places around the world. As Social Shoppers search the globefor great bargains, they will be able to interact with their friends inour social networking community and view “live social feeds” fromFacebook™ and Twitter™. Social Shoppers will be able to “talk live” onSkype™ and share the latest deals with their friends.

Social Networking Community

Users will be able to connect online just like in the real world. Userswill be able to interact with their friends, play games, follow theirfavorite sports team, search for a great restaurant, a museum, artgallery or other Products, Goods & Services, upload videos & photos,send instant messages and video chat with their circles of friends. TheCompany plans on capitalizing on the popularity of social networkinggiants Facebook™ and Twitter™, with a combined 900 million usersworldwide, by integrating “live social” feeds into its website. TheCompany plans on developing an application that can be downloaded byusers in these popular social networks. On average people on Facebook™install applications more than 20 million times per day. More than 350million active users currently use Facebook™ through their mobiledevices.

As more and more people sign up for Social Earth around the world, ahighly engaged social networking community will create “stickiness” thatwill keep users coming back to the site for again and again. The socialnetworking community aspect of Social Earth will be the driver behindconnecting users with their circle of friends and spreading the wordabout the latest bargains, hippest restaurant, sharing photos, sendinginstant messages and video chat. Add to that the power of collectivebuying and it's easy to see how the social networking community will beable to leverage group size in exchange for larger discounts. TheCompany plans on developing its website in different foreign languagesto attract users from outside the U.S. and around the world.

Giving Back:

Social Earth will give back to our planet and help children, familiesand others in need from around the world by donating a portion of eachsale to humanitarian aid, charitable donations and sustainable gifts.Social Earth plans on giving back to our planet by supportingorganizations that promote reducing ecological impact and saving ourplanet from grave ecological harm. Social Shoppers will also be able tosupport causes by contributing money through the Social Earth ShoppingCart.

Products & Services Description:

The Company plans on delivering a global interface with a unique onlineshopping experience with social networking and multitude of products andservice in their local area or just about any place around the world asusers virtually tour around our planet. They will be able to use SocialEarth after installing a Google Earth™ plug-in. This one-of-a-kindsocial networking website that will use GPS technology to reach peopleat the point of shopping displaying the exact location of daily deals,coupons, products & services from merchants in their actual, physicallocation on the planet. Users will be able to connect online just likein the real world. Users will be able to interact with their circle offriends. Fly Anywhere on Earth by typing in a physical address or famouslandmark. Use the Google Navigation Tool to zoom down to street level totake a closer look. Search for a great restaurant, museum, hotel,fitness center, address, landmark or thousands of other products, goods& services using GPS technologies. Virtual scavenger hunt looking foreverything interesting, unusual or unexplained. Upload videos & photos,send instant messages, play games and video chat with their circles offriends. Participate in online auctions and penny auctions. Follow yourfavorite sports team, view stadiums, scores, teams and players frommajor sporting events as they occur around the globe. View links toplaces and events, data on the landscape, interactive 360 panoramas,fly-through shopping tours with stunning 3D imagery and videos. Searchfor the latest bargains via a mobile phone to reach people at the pointof shopping. Zoom into birds-eye view and navigate around stunning 3Dsatellite images. Watch videos and news via RSS links. Have a uniqueinteractive online 3D shopping experience. Learn how Social Earth givesback to our planet and helping children, families and those in needthrough humanitarian aid, charitable donations or sustainable gifts. Asour social networking community grows around the world, the Company willbe able to develop additional revenue verticals such as online dating,online retail stores and more!

Advantages

Social Earth plans to offer a unique online shopping experience to usersand provide a multitude of advantages over other daily deal sites.Social Earth will connect users online just like in the real world.Social Earth will allow users a one stop shopping experience where theycan find great bargains, chat with their circle of friends interact,search, play games, participate in virtual scavenger hunt, follow theirfavorite sport, upload videos & photos, send messages and more. Unlikeother daily deal sites, Social Earth daily deals won't last just oneday. Social Earth will reach mobile customers at the point of sale viaGPS technology. Social Earth will combine the power of a socialnetworking community with a collective bargaining coupon site, thefastest growing business model on the Web. Social networking integrationwill create “stickiness” and bring Social Shoppers back to the siteagain and again. Social Earth will give back with every purchase.

Further non limiting examples of how the delivery system and software ofthe invention is interactive with the social shopper based upon thesocial shopper's preference, location, GPS, buying patterns, likes &dislikes, user profile, online communications, social networking, socialnetworking communities, social networking activities, messaging, onlinecommunications, viewing public & private user profiles, advertising,bidding, bidding behavior, bidding results, purchasing, behavior, buyingpattern and other criteria allowing the social behavior software tosearch for and filter and display related ad links, promotions, onlinecoupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainmentshopping penny auctions or online auctions, or advertisements andaffiliate advertising or services from merchants and sellers on the 3Dlandscape. So when a social shopper searches for ad links, promotions,online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services,entertainment shopping, penny auctions or online auctions,advertisements and affiliate advertising or services on Social Earth,the social behavior software will keep track of online activity,location, online communications, search inquiries, social networking,social networking communities, social networking activities, messaging,viewing public & private profiles, advertising, bidding, biddingbehavior, bidding results, social plugins, ad links, promotions, socialapplications, purchasing, behavior, buying patterns and other criteriaand search for, filter and display related ad links, promotions, onlinecoupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainmentshopping, penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements andaffiliate advertising or services from merchants and sellers on the 3Dlandscape based upon the desired location, GPS technology, behaviortracking, which can even predict future demand.

Each user's will have a unique experience on Social Earth based upontheir online activity, location, online communications, searchinquiries, social networking, social networking communities, socialnetworking activities, messaging, viewing public & private userprofiles, advertising, bidding, bidding behavior, bidding results,social plugins, ad links, promotions, social applications, buyingpreference, location and other criteria. So if someone is searching fora particular promotion, online coupon, mobile service, Product, Good orService, entertainment shopping, penny auction or online auctions,advertisement and affiliate advertising or service on Social Earth, thesocial behavior software will track their online activity, location,online communications, search inquiries, social networking, socialnetworking communities, social networking activities, messaging, viewingpublic & private user profiles, advertising, bidding, bidding, biddingbehavior, bidding results, social plugins, ad links, promotions, socialapplications, purchasing, behavior, buying patterns and other criteriaand filter and display related ad links, promotions, online coupons,mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping,penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliateadvertising or services from merchants and sellers on the 3D landscapebased upon the desired location, GPS technology, behavior tracking,which can even predict future buying demand.

For example, if someone is searching for a sporting event or other typeof entertainment on Social Earth and the social shopper previouslypurchased a coupon for a pizza, the social behavior software will locatenearby pizza restaurants, sporting events, sports venues, sports bars,hotels, and other points of interest etc. based upon the onlineactivity, location, online communications, search inquiries, socialnetworking, social networking communities, social networking activities,messaging, viewing public & private user profiles, advertising, bidding,bidding behavior, bidding results, social plugins, ad links, promotions,social applications, purchasing, behavior, buying patterns and othercriteria and filter and display related coupons, products, goods,services, advertisements and service providers on the 3D landscape basedupon the desired location, GPS technology, behavior tracking, which caneven predict future shopping.

If someone is searching for a new or used car, motorcycle, recreational,RV or other type of motorized vehicle or transportation on Social Earth,the software will search for related services based upon GPS such asi.e. dealerships, manufacturers, insurance, tires, oil change, car wash,air conditioning, gas stations, etc. based upon the online activity,location, online communications, search inquiries, social networking,social networking communities, social networking activities, messaging,viewing public & private user profiles, advertising, bidding, biddingbehavior, bidding results, social plugins, ad links, promotions, socialapplications, purchasing, behavior, buying patterns and other criteriaand filter and display related ad links, promotions, online coupons,mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping,penny auctions, or online auctions, advertisements and affiliateadvertising or services from merchants and sellers on the 3D landscapebased upon the desired location, GPS technology, behavior socialsoftware tracking, which can even predict future shopping.

If the social shopper has previously purchased a coupon for pet food,the social behavior software will keep track of online activity,location, online communications, search inquiries, social networking,social networking communities, social networking activities, messaging,viewing public & private user profiles, advertising, bidding, biddingbehavior, bidding results, social plugins, ad links, promotions socialapplications, purchasing, behavior, buying patterns and other criteriaand filter and display related ad links, promotions, online coupons,mobile services, Products, Goods & Services, entertainment shopping,penny auctions or online auction, advertisements and affiliateadvertising or services, pet stores, veterinarians, grooming services,advertisements and other related pet services on the 3D landscape basedupon the desired location, GPS technology, behavior tracking, which caneven predict future shopping demand.

If someone is searching for a home, condo, apartment or other type ofreal estate on Social Earth, the social behavior software will trackonline activity, location, online communications, search inquiries,social networking, social networking communities, social networkingactivities, messaging, viewing public & private user profiles,advertising, bidding, bidding behavior, bidding results, social plugins,ad links, promotions, social applications, bidding, bidding behavior,bidding results, purchasing, behavior, buying patterns and othercriteria and filter and display related ad links, promotions onlinecoupons, mobile services Products, Goods or Services, entertainmentshopping, penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements andaffiliate advertising or services from i.e. brokers, agents, relocationservices, lenders, moving and storage, furniture, lawn care orgardening, grocery stores, schools, doctors & physicians, parks,cleaning services, etc. on the 3D landscape, based upon the desiredlocation, GPS technology, behavior tracking, which can even predictfuture buying demand.

If someone is searching for a school, college, university or other typeof educational services on Social Earth, the social behavior softwarewill track online activity, location, online communications, searchinquiries, social networking, social networking communities socialnetworking activities, messaging, viewing public & private userprofiles, advertising, bidding, bidding behavior, bidding results,social plugins, ad links, promotions, social applications, purchasing,behavior, buying patterns and other criteria and filter and displayrelated ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobile services, Products,Goods or Services, entertainment shopping, penny auctions or onlineauctions, advertisements and affiliate advertising or services for suchitems as i.e. online classes, student loans, financial aid, colleges,universities, private and public schools, tutoring, test preparation,etc. on the 3D landscape based upon the desired location, GPStechnology, behavior tracking, which can even predict future buyingdemand.

If someone is searching for a particular travel destination on SocialEarth, the social behavior software will track online activity,location, online communications, search inquiries, social networking,social networking communities, social networking activities, messaging,viewing public & private user profiles, advertising, bidding, biddingbehavior, bidding results, social plugins, ad links, promotions, socialapplications, purchasing, behavior, buying patterns and other criteriaand filter and display related ad links, promotions, online coupons,mobile services, Products, Goods or Services, entertainment shopping,penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements and affiliateadvertising or services from merchants and sellers for such items asi.e. travel deals, airfare or ground transportation options,restaurants, sport venues, entertainment, airports, car rentals, limos,dry cleaners and other services, etc. on the 3D landscape based upon thedesired location, GPS technology, behavior tracking, which can evenpredict future buying demand.

If someone is searching for an environmental-friendly or green producton Social Earth, the social behavior software will track onlineactivity, location, online communications, search inquiries, socialnetworking, social networking communications, social networkingactivities, messaging, viewing public & private user profiles,advertising, bidding, bidding behavior, bidding results, social plugins,ad links, promotions, social applications, purchasing, behavior, buyingpatterns and other criteria and filter and display related ad links,promotions, online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goods & Services,entertainment shopping, penny auctions or online auctions,advertisements and affiliate advertising services for such as items asi.e. eco-friendly home, office and business products that reduce thecarbon footprint, made from recycled materials and do little harm to theenvironment, etc. on the 3D landscape based upon the desired location,GPS technology, behavior tracking, which can search criteria, socialshopper's buying preferences, buying patters, likes and dislikes, onlinecommunications, transaction history, etc. and even predict future buyingdemand.

If someone is searching for a flight comparison on Social Earth byclicking on one of the travel links i.e. Expedia, Travelocity, Orbitz,Cheap Flights, Kayak, etc., the social behavior software will trackonline activity, location, online communications, search inquiries,social networking, social networking communities, social networkingactivities, messaging, viewing public & private user profiles,advertising, bidding, bidding behavior, bidding results, social plugins,social ad links, promotions, applications, purchasing, behavior andbuying patterns and other criteria and filter and display related adlinks, promotions, online coupons, mobile services, Products, Goods orServices, entertainment shopping, penny auctions or online auctions,advertisements and affiliate advertising or services for such servicesas fights, hotels, car rentals, restaurants, food & drink, entertainmentand other related services on the 3D landscape based upon the desiredlocation, GPS technology, behavior tracking, which can even predictfuture buying demand.

If someone is searching for a penny auction or online auction on SocialEarth, the social behavior software will track online activity,location, online communications, search inquiries, social networking,social networking communities, social networking activities, messaging,viewing public & private user profiles, advertising, bidding, biddingbehavior, bidding results, social plugins, ad links, promotions, socialapplications, purchasing, behavior and buying patterns and othercriteria and filter and display related ad links, promotions, onlinecoupons, mobile services, Products, Goods or Services, entertainmentshopping, penny auctions or online auctions, advertisements andaffiliate advertising or services on the 3D landscape based upon thedesired location, GPS technology, behavior tracking, which can evenpredict future buying demand.

If someone is searching for a sporting event, sports memorabilia orother merchandise or advertisement on Social Earth, the social behaviorsoftware will track online activity, location, online communications,search inquiries, social networking, social networking communities,social networking activities, messaging, viewing public & private userprofiles, advertising, bidding, bidding behavior, bidding results,social plugins, ad links, promotions, social applications, purchasing,behavior and buying patterns and other criteria and filter and displayrelated ad links, promotions, online coupons, mobile services, Products,Goods or Services, entertainment shopping, sporting events, merchandise,advertisements and affiliate advertising or services on the 3D landscapebased upon the desired location, GPS technology, behavior tracking,which can even predict future buying demand.

Advantages: Social Earth™ plans to offer a unique online shoppingexperience to users and provide a multitude of advantages over otherdaily deal sites by connecting users online just like in the real world.Social Earth will allow users a one stop shopping experience where theycan find great bargains, chat with their circle of friends interact,search, play games, upload photos, send messages all without everyleaving Social Earth. Unlike other daily deal sites, Social Earth™ dealswon't last just one day. Social Earth is going to reach customers at thepoint of sale via GPS technology. Social Earth is going to combine thepower of a social networking community with a collective bargainingcoupon site, the fastest growing business model on the Web. Socialnetworking integration will create “stickiness” and bring SocialShoppers back to the site again and again. Social Earth™ is going togive back with each purchase.

1. A method for providing social networking interactions using Internetand mobile devices or wireless devices or computer that provide end usercustomized interactive displays of three dimensional (3D) geospatial andmobile maps comprising end user customized ad links, coupons, mobilecoupons, promotions relating to Products, Goods & Services, and relatedcompany and local information, said method comprising: (a) collectingand analyzing initial end users data via a processor on a computersystem or mobile device or wireless device to provide initial end usersdata sets, said initial end users data sets comprising (1) initial endusers' (A) online activity, (B) geo-target location and multiple pointsof interest, (C) receiving current location of user's electronic ormobile device or wireless or computer and multiple points of interest,(D) online communications, (E) group chat, (F) circle of friends, (G)hangouts, (H) games, (I) sports, (J) social networking, (K) searchinquiries, (L) videos or photos, (M) instant messenger, (N) socialnetworking interactions, (O) end user profiles and/or preferences, (P)viewing and interactions with online ad links, coupons, mobile coupons,promotions, (Q) purchasing, (R) purchasing behavior, (S) generating userbehavior data, (T) preferences (U) buying patterns and (V) advertisingimpressions; wherein said initial end user data sets further comprisinginitial end users related (2) consumer profiles, (3) trends, (4)cloud-type configuration sharing and handling large amounts of user dataacross multiple enterprises and (5) target markets; (b) generating, viaa processor on a computer system or mobile device, first promotionaldata sets from said initial end user data sets, wherein said firstpromotional data sets comprising first sets of customized ad links,coupons, mobile coupons, promotions for each of (i) said initial endusers, (ii) additional end users, and (iii) target end user groups, saidfirst sets of customized ad links, coupons and promotions relating to(1) Products, (2) Goods, (3) Services, (4) company and localinformation, (5) integrated social networking and (6) associated 3Dgeospatial and mobile mapping coordinates; and (c) generating, via aprocessor on a computer system or mobile device, second promotional datasets from said first promotional data sets to provide 3D geospatial andmobile mapping interactive displays comprising said first sets ofcustomized ad links, coupons, mobile coupons, and promotions relating to(1) Products, (2) Goods, (3) Services, (4) company and localinformation, (5) integrated social networking and (6) associated 3Dgeospatial and mobile mapping coordinates; and (d) selecting andintegrating, into said 3D geospatial and mobile map interactive displayscomprising said first sets of customized ad links, coupons, mobilecoupons, and promotions, and a first social/geo/promo link category fora first position of a social/geo/promo link promotional data set; and(e) identifying one or more second social/geo/promo link categoriesusing one or more correlation criteria, said at least one secondsocial/geo/promo link category having one or more correlation criteriaassociated with the first social/geo/promo link category.
 2. A methodfor providing social networking interactions using Internet and mobilewebsites that provide end user customized interactive displays of threedimensional (3D) geospatial and mobile maps comprising end usercustomized ad links, coupons, mobile coupons, promotions relating toProducts, Goods & Services, and related company and local information,said method comprising: (a) electronically assigning, via a processor ona computer system, an end user identifier to a client mobile device orwireless device or computer receiving a request from said end user; (b)electronically providing via a processor on a computer system or mobiledevice or wireless device, a 3D geospatial or mobile mapping interactivedisplay data showing (1) first promotional data collections for separatelocations shown on said displays, said first promotional datacollections comprising interactive links to ad links, coupons, mobilecoupons, promotions related to (1) Products, (2) Goods, (3) Services,(4) company and local information, (5) social networking and (6)associated 3D geospatial and mobile mapping coordinates; and (c)electronically providing, via a processor on a computer system or mobiledevice or wireless device, an interactive display on said clientcomputer of said 3D geospatial and mobile mapping interactive displayprovided in step (b); (d) electronically monitoring, collecting andanalyzing, via a processor on a mobile device or wireless device orcomputer system data analysis system, end user data relating to endusers' (i) online activity, (ii) geo-target location and multiple pointsof interest, (iii) receiving current location of user's electronic ormobile device or wireless device and multiple points of interest, (iv)online communications, (v) group chat, (vi) circle of friends, (vii)hangouts, (viii) games, (ix) sports, (x) social networking, (xi) searchinquiries, (xii) videos or photos, (xiii) instant messenger, (xiv)social networking interactions, (xv) end user profiles and/orpreferences, (xvi) viewing and interactions with online ad links,promotions, (xvii) purchasing, (xviii) purchasing behavior, (xix)generating user behavior data, (xx) preferences, (xxi) buying patternsand (xxii) advertising impressions, to provide end users output data;(e) electronically processing via a processor on a computer system ormobile device or wireless device, said end user output data from step(d) to electronically generate second consumer data sets related to oneor more of said end users, additional end users, and target end usergroups, said second consumer data sets comprising end user relatedconsumer profiles, trends, cloud-type configuration sharing and handlinglarge amounts of user data across multiple enterprises and targetmarkets, based on said analyzing in step (c); (f) electronicallyprocessing said first and second consumer data sets to generate secondend user geospatial and mobile mapping interactive displays, said datasets using multi-dimensional and scalable geospatial and mobile mappingwith interactive links to ad links, promotions related to (1) Products,(2) Goods, (3) Services, (4) company and local information, (5) socialnetworking and (6) associated 3D geospatial and mobile mappingcoordinates; (g) selecting and integrating, into said second end usergeospatial interactive displays from step (f): a first social/geo/promolink category for a first position of a social/geo/promo linkpromotional data set; and (h) identifying one or more secondsocial/geo/promo link categories using one or more correlation criteria,at least one second social/geo/promo link category having one or morecorrelation criteria associated with the first social/geo/promo linkcategory; and (i) electronically displaying on said client mobile deviceor wireless device or computer system said second end user geospatialinteractive display data sets provided in steps (f) or (g).
 3. Themethod of claim 1, further comprising: selecting a thirdsocial/geo/promo link category for a second position of thesocial/geo/promo link promotional data set, where the thirdsocial/geo/promo link category is different from the one or moreidentified second social/geo/promo link categories.
 4. The method ofclaim 1, wherein: the social/geo/promo link promotional data set isassociated with a web page; and the social/geo/promo link categories areordered by relevance to the web page.
 5. The method of claim 1, whereinidentifying one or more second social/geo/promo link categories usingone or more correlation criteria further comprises: identifying one ormore social/geo/promo link categories having a correlation measure thatis less than a correlation threshold.
 6. The method of claim 4, wherein:the social/geo/promo link categories are associated with one or morecategory identifiers; and at least one of the one or more correlationcriteria of a second social/geo/promo link category is a measure of thecorrelation between a category identifier associated with the secondsocial/geo/promo link category and a category identifier associated withthe first social/geo/promo link category.
 7. The method of claim 5,wherein at least one second social/geo/promo link category has aseparate correlation measure for at least one pair-wise combination of acategory identifier associated with the at least one secondsocial/geo/promo link category and a category identifier associated withthe first social/geo/promo link category.
 8. The method of claim 6,wherein the at least one second social/geo/promo link category has acomposite correlation measure, the composite correlation measure beingone of a maximum, a minimum, or a combination of the separatecorrelation criteria for the at least one second social/geo/promo linkcategory.
 9. The method of claim 7, wherein identifying one or moresocial/geo/promo link categories having a correlation measure that isless than a correlation threshold further comprises: identifying one ormore social/geo/promo link categories having a composite correlationmeasure that is less than a correlation threshold.
 10. A methodcomprising: selecting a first social/geo/promo link category for a firstposition of a social/geo/promo link promotional data set, the firstsocial/geo/promo link category being in a set of candidatesocial/geo/promo link categories; and for at least one empty position inthe social/geo/promo link promotional data set: identifyingsocial/geo/promo link categories having a correlation measure that isless than a correlation threshold, the identified social/geo/promo linkcategories being in the set of candidate social/geo/promo linkcategories, at least one social/geo/promo link category in the set ofcandidate social/geo/promo link categories having one or morecorrelation criteria associated with a most recently selectedsocial/geo/promo link category; and selecting a next social/geo/promolink category for a next empty position of the social/geo/promo linkpromotional data set, the next social/geo/promo link category being inthe set of candidate social/geo/promo link categories.
 11. The method ofclaim 10, further comprising: removing the identified social/geo/promolink categories from the set of candidate social/geo/promo linkcategories.
 12. The method of claim 10, further comprising: removing theselected social/geo/promo link categories from the set of candidatesocial/geo/promo link categories.
 13. The method of claim 10, wherein:the social/geo/promo link categories in the set of candidatesocial/geo/promo link categories are associated with a web page; and thesocial/geo/promo link categories in the set of candidatesocial/geo/promo link categories are ordered by relevance of thesocial/geo/promo link categories to the web page.
 14. (canceled) 15.(canceled)
 16. (canceled)
 17. A method according to claim 1, wherein a.said social networking comprises one or more of social networkinginteractions, social applications, social sharing, social contextadvertising, commercial content advertising, mobile advertising, mobiledisplay ads, mobile coupons, social & mobile web interactions, and b.said promotion comprises one or more of mobile display advertising,mobile display ads, mobile coupons, mobile advertising, social contextadvertising, location based ads, mapped ads, performance based ads, userprofile based ads, preference ads, commercial content advertising,mobile advertising, mobile display ads, mobile coupons, geo-targetedads, geo-location ads, and advertising impressions.
 18. A methodaccording to claim 2, wherein a. said social networking comprises one ormore of social networking interactions, social applications, socialsharing, social context advertising, commercial content advertising,social & mobile web interactions, and b. said promotion comprises one ormore of mobile display advertising, mobile display ads, mobile coupons,mobile advertising, social context advertising, location based ads,mapped ads, performance based ads, user profile based ads, lifestylepreference ads, commercial content advertising, geo-targeted ads,geo-location ads and advertising impressions.
 19. A method of claim 1,wherein said product or service is selected from the group consisting ofretail, wholesale, travel, hospitality, real estate, educationalservices, entertainment shopping services, penny and online auctionservices, service provider services, loan services or loans or creditonline or via a mobile device or wireless device through a server,business center services, affiliate services, or related products orservices